Laptops reign with dipping prices

NEW DELHI: With major vendors reducing their laptop prices by 40 percent, the demand for these products is witnessing an upswing. Resellers say that the trend began two years ago, and has peaked in the last six months, when their unit sales went up by 35 percent to 40 percent.

According to the resellers, the growth is primarily due to the price drops and increasing technological awareness among customers. The entry of new and local players has forced vendors such as IBM, Toshiba and HP to reduce their prices.

SMC International marketing manager, Moninder Singh stated, "the growth in the laptop market has been phenomenal in the OND quarter. We have sold more than 40 units in JAS this year, which is a 40 percent increase compared to the same period last fiscal."

The reseller community hopes that this trend continues, primarily because customers have now started accepting the need for laptops. "Earlier we used to sell 10 to 15 units a quarter. But now the trend has changed. We hope to cross the 50-unit mark this quarter," remarked Moninder.

Broadway Computers CEO, Mahinder Aggarwal remarked, "with price-reduction of laptops, came customer acceptability. These devices are no more treated as a corporate product and this has been has major boost for all resellers." Broadway Computers recorded a sale of 55 units in the JAS quarter of 2003, a surge of 40 percent from the same period last fiscal. For OND, 2003, it is targeting sales of more than 70 units.

Market sources reveal that the SOHO segment is very price conscious. They say that once the prices of products come down, home users are the first to catch on to it. Said Vidur and Co CEO, Keshav Madhav, "we are watching the market very closely, as we plan to add laptops to our kitty. We will the authorized reseller for the soon-to-be launched Samsung laptops." He too believes that stiff competition in the market has brought down prices.

Branded laptops are available for less than Rs 50,000, while local notebooks come as low as Rs 40,000. "The market has really picked up pace in the last six months and is growing at 40 percent. I expect this growth to continue in the coming fiscal also," added Madhav.

Netlink Business Systems CEO, Rajesh Bakshi remarked, "we have grown at a rate of 70 percent in the OND quarter, compared to the same period last fiscal. This is primarily due to the reduction in laptop prices." He expects the market to grow at a rate of 60 percent to 70 percent in the coming fiscal, adding that the SOHO segment will be the major buyers of laptops.

(CyberMedia News Service)