India is considered to be a price-sensitive market. Taking price as a major factor to woo the customers, a lot of vendors have launched or are planning to launch low cost desktops and laptops in the Indian market.
Latest in the run is the tie-up between chipmaker Intel and Taiwanese manufacturer Asustek. They plan to unveil laptops targeted toward the developing country. The laptops that will be launched would fall under the range of Rs.8,000-12,000. Currently, the cheapest laptop available in India is priced at Rs.20,000 by Kolkata-based Xenitis Infotech.
Despite being the price sensitive market, there’s a surge in the sales of laptops in the Indian market. The growing awareness about technology has led to the change in purchasing habits of the Indian buyers. Desktops are slowly losing their charm, while laptops are here to stay. As per reports, at the end of the last financial year, India s PC population consisted of a million laptops and 5.4 million desktops. And this year, laptops are expected to double.
These figures clearly indicate that laptops that are considered to be luxury products are still soaring high at a fast pace. The question arises: will these low cost products be successful in making a mark in the Indian market? PC makers like Xenitis, HCL, and Sahara Computers had launched sub-Rs.10,000 desktops that failed to create a stir in the market.
A lot of channel partners feel that launching low cost products is just a strategy to excite the market sentiments. With such slashed prices, customers will definitely consider buying products that are beyond their reach. But history demonstrates that low budget PCs failed due to their outdated technology.
The point is, Indian buyers might be price sensitive, but they definitely want better configuration and quality. Instead of marginal prices, buyers look out for competitive pricing and schemes that will crack a fair deal for them.