The market is awash with computing devices and buyers are spoilt for choice. Here’s a guide to help you zero in on the gadget that suits your profile as well as your pocket
Imagine a computer that starts up in five-seven seconds, has a battery that lasts 10 hours and is distinctly slimmer than laptops. Sounds good? Now answer this — would you invest half a lakh (or a lakh, in case you need premium specifications) for it?
If you just shrugged, then you have deterred ‘them’ in the least. Because, Dell, Acer, Lenovo, Toshiba and Samsung are coming for you — to demonstrate how their Ultrabook PCs stand superior among the PC clutter.
To be clear, Ultrabooks aren’t compromised laptops like netbooks were, but instead, they are a new notebook PC category, created by Intel. These are characterised by a light, thin form factor, powered by Intel Sandy Bridge processors, flash-based solid state drives (SSDs) and long battery lives and unlike netbooks, Ultrabooks do not look destined to buckle under the pressure of tablet PC growth.
Why OEMs want you to love Ultrabooks
As far as design and looks are concerned, Ultrabooks do stand out and make the niftiest laptop — barring the Apple MacBook Air that seems to be the inspiration behind all Ultrabooks — look awkward. But the starting price tag of Rs 48,000 on the cheapest Ultrabook model (presently offered by Samsung) can make an average buyer rethink their decision to take home, what looks like a really “thin” laptop.
However, Mahesh Bhalla, executive director & general manager (Consumer and SMB), Dell India agrees that the Ultrabooks in market today are on the premium side limiting their market. But he quickly adds, “Indians have never really gone for cheapest product in the market. Tell me one cheapest gadget that is a market leader in its category?” He’s right. The cheapest tablet PC Aakash did not exactly drive hordes of happy consumers to stores nor did it set the cash registers ringing like an Apple iPad or iPhone launch does.
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Dell’s latest Ultrabook, XPS 13, which is a 13-inch machine, with a core i5/i7 processor, Intel HD graphics, 4GB RAM, 128 GB (with options for 256 GB) SSD has been priced at nearly Rs 80,000 and takes Apple’s 13-inch MacBook Air head on that is priced at Rs 74,000. Bhalla, who does really benchmark XPS 13 against MacBook Air, says, “Owning a premium gadget is aspirational and Indians always tend to buy the gadget that gives them value for the money. We are not saying don’t buy another brand but we know that Dell XPS 13 has the fastest boot time of 7 seconds, head-turner and three years warranty that’s unheard of,” asserts Bhalla.
Meanwhile, to make the deal sweeter, OEMs are now bundling in access to premium entertainment content with the purchase of Ultrabooks. For instance, Ranjit Yadav, country head (Mobile and IT), Samsung India lists that Ultrabook buyers get access to mynotepc.com, an online platform that gives unlimited entertainment content for three months enabling to play, stream or download movies or games. “All that the user needs to do is log on to www.mynotepc.com, register with device serial number and access the content. There are more than 500 movies across genres including action, family & drama, romance and comedy. In the games section, users can access more than 400 games across categories including action & arcade, adventure, puzzles and simulation.”
Acer, which introduced Ultrabooks in its portfolio last year, underlines that its new line of laptops has seen acceptability from both consumers and enterprises. “On a global platform Acer took over the US-based cloud computing firm iGware to bring new value proposition for its customers by providing applications and software services. We aim to start these services in some select geographies in a phased manner,” promises S Rajendran, chief marketing officer, Acer India
As per IDC, the projected growth for desktops is around 5 per cent, whereas for consumer notebook PCs is projected at 24 per cent. “Clearly notebooks and Ultrabooks are growing at a rate faster than desktops and we are seeing this trend in the first quarter already,” claims Yadav.
The early adopters
While Acer cites demand from the SMB segment to be at a nascent stage, Dell insists that small businesses are likely to step up their IT infrastructures with Ultrabooks this year. Bhalla insists, “We have an existing user base of SMBs who partner with us for hardware products and software services. Several have come to us expressing an interest in Ultrabooks and not one of them has expressed concerns on pricing.” Dell is targeting SMB customers with ageing desktop PC hardware to move on to Ultrabooks in near future. “Enterprises who have just invested in laptops may not switch to a new hardware platform immediately but we have several customers who would like to introduce Ultrabooks to their employees, who are on the field, to be equipped with Ultrabooks,” says Bhalla, refusing to share specific statistics on the same.
In January this year, at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), Intel showed off 15-odd Ultrabooks in the market with another 60 designs in the pipeline. So, it is an accepted fact that prices will fall by end of 2012 as OEMs introduce their Ultrabook models.
Analysts are predicting a definite fall in pricing for Ultrabooks during the course of the year, notably with the arrival of Intel’s next-generation Ivy Bridge platform. Price decreases are also expected to be fuelled by competitive offerings from companies such as AMD, who outlined its competitive platform codenamed ‘Ultrathin’ at the CES. Rumours are that products based on this will be launched around June time and prices are said to be around $500 (approx Rs 25,000). “However, as long as the price point is higher than for example that of an iPad, consumers are more likely to choose a tablet PC or cheap, traditional notebook,” reasons a report by IT market researchers, Context.
Go test an Ultrabook at a store near you
| MAKING THE DECISION | ||
| Your computing needs | Devices recommended | Best value-for-money option |
| Strictly for family members within home, mostly as a secondary computing device | A tablet PC OR A desktop PC | * Apple iPad2 that starts at ~25,000 and has access to hordes of apps that address all age groups * Dell, Lenovo, Acer, HP desktop (includes monitor, peripherals) that starts at Rs 17,500 |
| Broadly for personal usage (at home and on-the-go) but as a secondary computing device | A tablet PC OR An Ultrabook | * Apple iPad2 that starts at Rs 25,000. Among Android tablets, Samsung Galaxy tab and Sony’s tablet PC stand out * Samsung Series 5 starts at Rs 48,990 — available in 13- and 14-inch screens, sports Core i5 processor. The Acer Aspire S3 at ~49,999 with a 13.3-inch screen, Core i5 processor, follows closely |
| Essentially for young children, mostly for entertainment | A tablet PC | The sheer choice of apps and books for children remains unmatched on the Apple App store. Hence, iPad2 (or the new iPad) is the best choice; prices start at Rs 25,000. Among the Android tablets, Samsung Galaxy (7&10 inch) scores highest; prices start at Rs 14,000 |
| Primary computer for the house | A laptop OR A desktop PC | * Laptops that emphasise on entertainment (built-in speakers, HDMI port, HD screens, etc), productivity (well-spaced keyboard, bundled software suites, etc) and portability (light weight, extra battery packs, etc), should be chosen, depending on the age groups of users and usage; prices start at Rs 23,500 * Any branded PC from Dell, HP, Samsung, Acer, Asus etc with hardware specifications that compliment usage; prices start at about Rs 17,500 |
| Young professionals who demand mobility, yet full-fledged PC functions | An Ultrabook OR A lightweight laptop | * Dell XPS 13 or Samsung Series 5 or Lenovo IdeaPad U300s are perfect for on-the-go usage, with a sub-1.5 kg weight and an average battery life of nine hours and a comfortable display of 13-inch and above; prices start at Rs 49,000 * 14-inch Lenovo Thinkpad T420 and 14-inch Dell Latitude E6410 weigh under 2.5 kg and can run up to 9 hours; prices start at Rs 40,000 |
Groundwork, to ensure Ultrabooks are available for consumers to ‘look and feel’ in retail stores, is underway. Samsung, Acer and Dell are making sure no customer who walk into their stores leaves without taking a look at the new Ultrabooks. “We are setting up 275 exclusive retail stores for selling our convergence products including Ultrabooks in addition to using our network of over 300 Samsung Plazas,” shares Yadav of Samsung.
At the time of launch of the first Ultrabook, Acer made the device available for consumers through large format retailers in the top 8 cities of the country. “Today a consumer can purchase the same from our retail outlets, namely the Acer Malls and Acer Points. In a retail environment, customer-buying experience is much more personalized. Consumers are taken through the features of the product while also experiencing the product through hands-on-demo,” Rajendran says. Acer remains bullish that in the consumer notebooks category, Ultrabooks will contribute approximately 10 -15 per cent to its business this year.
Dell too is ensuring that Ultrabooks are promoted heavily on its website and in retail stores. “We have trained personnel who can give the consumer a demo on the salient features of an Ultrabook vs a laptop. We don't push a particular device on to user,” lets on Bhalla.