Desktops & Notebooks: The Year 2005—06: Some Interesting Facts

Experience the Cordless Desktop

This offering surely aims to enrich the user experience by providing more
convenience particularly to the Mac buyers. Logitech announced the availability
of Logitech cordless desktop S530 laser for Mac, a cordless keyboard-and-mouse
combination. The cordless desktop S 530 -laser for Mac is a stylish upgrade from
a standard -keyboard and mouse and the perfect addition for products such as the
Mac mini, which isn't sold with a mouse or keyboard. The keyboard and mouse
are soft white with silver accents, matching the coloring of the Mac. The
desktop comes with five-year limited hardware -warranty.

e-Governance Fuels Public Sector Buying

The government's initiative on connecting the -country through
e-governance program is expected to shoot the rate of desktop buyers in the next
two years.

Manufacturers' Association for Information Tech-nology (MAIT) in its
industry performance review stated that the number of desktop buyers in the
government sector will increase due to the e-governance program rollout.

The industry performance review 2005-06 -revealed that consumption in
government sector has increased by 33%. Vinnie Mehta, executive director, MAIT
said that compared to other three sectors: factory locations, office locations,
and outlets, the number of desktop buyers in the government sector is low.
According to the survey the government sector contributed 3% among the desktop
buyers.

Wireless Desktops

After notebooks, now desktops are ready to give you wireless computing
experience. In this direction, Hewlett-Packard India introduced under the range
of HP Pavilion Media Center PCs the new HP Pavilion m7382IN model enabled with a
Wireless LAN (802.11 b/g). Enhanced with new Avivo technology, the new HP
Pavilion m7382IN Media Center PC, can be connected wirelessly with your home
entertainment devices for digital convergence. Avivo technology creates vibrant
colors, ultra sharp images, true-to-life image reproduction, and the smoothest
High Definition video playback ever offered by a PC. The desktop is powered by
the Intel Pentium D dual core processor and will offer an impressive processing
speed to the consumer, not only for regular computing needs but also for gaming,
movies, entertainment, etc.

Get A Feel, Before You Buy

Thanks to Lenovo initiative, now consumers will be able to experience PC
products including desktops at special outlets. Aligned with its strategy to tap
regional markets and create a strong retail presence, Lenovo India is in the
process of expanding channel networks here. While continuing to focus on the
consumer segments, especially SMB and SOHO markets, the company has set up
around 44 Lenovo exclusive storefronts and nearly 250 multi-branded storefronts
across the country so as to be able to provide customers with the opportunity to
experience products firsthand before purchasing. In addition to increasing its
direct sales presence to 20 locations in the country, Lenovo has a partner
presence increased to 215 cities in the country, besides 35 authorized service
providers for desktops with multi-city presence and ThinkPad Service Centers at
19 cities with Drop-off Pick-Up facility at 14 more cities.

Products for the Tech-conscious

The feature-conscious PC buyers have reason to -rejoice. LG Electronics
India (LGEIL), a provider of display and optical storage devices, launched a
range of premium consumer desktops called XPC in India. This range is targeted
at feature- and technology-conscious customers who appreciate the latest global
trends and want to be in sync with state-of-the-art products and leading-edge
technology.

The XPC models include fully loaded configurations based on Intel and AMD
Processors. The range also comes with the latest Microsoft Media Center -Edition
(MCE) Operating System. In combination with MCE OS and high-end processors like
Intel's LGA775/AMD's Athlon64, XPC offers features like high-speed
processing, access to media storage with remote, -personal video recording and
others.

Business Solution for SMBs

The small and medium businesses (SMBs), which are fast embracing technology
for their business applications stand to gain, as Tally Solutions tied up with
Millennium Computers to offer SMBs a total -business solution computer. These
desktops are pre-bundled with Tally 7.2 and are priced at Rs 15,500. With this
machine, Tally plans to offer its SMB customers value for their money while
simplifying their business accounting needs that include VAT, service tax, and
TDS compliance.

The association is geared to meet the requirements of customers in the
northern and eastern regions of India. Anil added that Tally's engagement with
-Millennium is the first of its kind and the company plans to tie up with other
PC manufacturers for similar offerings.

Unique Recognition for SMBs

Ten companies were finalized for the ACNielsen CIO Jury Award for Innovation
using Technology. Hikal Ltd, Mahyco Seeds and Yes Bank from Mumbai, Nippo
Batteries from Chennai, Dhunseri Tea and Industries Ltd and East India
Pharmaceutical Works Ltd from Kolkata, MRO-TEK Limited from Bangalore, Solutions
from Ahmedabad, Hans Plaza Hotel from Delhi, and Sahil Resorts & Agrifield
Farms Pvt Ltd from Pune were named the winners. It's observed that even SMBs
are required to invest in technology including desktops, laptops, networking,
office products, and communication software.

A Built-in Home Theatre

Targeting the fast-emerging digital entertainment market in India,Â
Asus introduced its specialized notebooks. They're targeted at home
users with entertainment features, and business segments. With the launch of a
wide array of notebooks, Asus hopes to cover all the bases from individuals,
corporates, home users to professionals, and gamers. According to the company,
the assortment will provide flexible and active choice to end-users. The
notebooks are launched under the Intel Sonoma platform, coupled with minimum
512MB RAM. On the leisure front, the vendor launched Asus W1 series with
built-in home theatre, enabling the user to enjoy the cinematic experience.

Now Campus on the Move

Hewlett-Packard India announced the roll out of its 'Campus on the Move'
initiative to promote its product and solution portfolio amongst the country's
leading educational institutes. As a part of the initiative, HP will be
simultaneously rolling out a series of road shows that will cover key cities
including New Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Salem, Trichy
and other key geographies.

Under this initiative, HP gives single window solution to educational
institutes for implementing IT infrastructure, which includes notebooks,
desktops and workstations, easy leasing option and customized after sales
support. Many institutions have benefited by implementing “Wireless campus”
with students using a laptop to learn from anywhere in the campus.

In the last one year, HP has shipped laptops to some of the most reputed
institutions in India such as Symbiosis, Wellingkar, Manipal, Amity Business
School, IIPM, Kalinga, Xavier's Institute of Management, Sri Mahavir Jain,
etc.

The 'Leaptop' Laptop

Foraying into the mobile computing space, information-enabling company HCL
Infosystems announced the launch of segment-specific range of notebooks brand
—'HCL Leaptops'. The new range of HCL notebooks are customized according
to the requirement of various target groups such as architects, engineers,
doctors, info-kiosks (for jewelers, opticians, banks), women, defense, etc. The
notebooks also have security features like data encryption, biometric
authentication, two-factor authentication, and anti-theft lock. HCL also
launched a notebook powered by Windows Starter Edition and another one powered
by Microsoft Media Center.

Alienware Notebooks for Gaming

Programmable graphics processor technologies firm NVIDIA Corporation
announced the demonstration of Alienware notebooks based on NVIDIA SLI
technology at Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3).

“Delivering new levels of visual realism at extreme high-definition
resolutions of 1680x1050 and higher, NVIDIA SLI technology enables dual NVIDIA
GPUs to be used in notebooks based on the NVIDIA nForce4 SLI core-logic
solution,” a company statement said.

These notebooks, targeted at one of the fastest growing segments of the
consumer notebook market, are among the fastest available dual GPU gaming
notebooks in the world. The Alienware Aurora mALX notebook with a 19” display
will be powered by two top-of-the-line NVIDIA GeForce Go 7900 GTX GPUs. Dual
high-performance GeForce Go 7900 GS GPUs will power the 17” Alienware Aurora
m9700.

'Cash Back' offer on Notebooks

Making the notebook buying easier for consumers, Acer India announced the
launch of “Cash Back” program, for a limited period. During this period,
customers buying an Acer laptop will earn anywhere from Rs 1000 to Rs 3000
depending on the notebook model purchased.

This offer is aimed at empowering the Home or SOHO users, working professionals
looking for a one-time purchase, and is aimed to enable channel partners with
the flexibility to offer customers a cash back option or a discount price, which
can be claimed from Acer.

To commemorate the Year of the Notebook 2006, Acer is empowering their
customers with a variety of offers to make notebooks more attractive and easily
available for everyone.

For Your Information and Entertainment

Taiwan-based Genius launched “TVGo A11” and “TVGo A03”, new twin
offerings for the entertainment space.

Genius TVGo A11 not only turns a PC into a TV/FM stereo system but also
enhances the experience of viewing and listening. Just plug it to any PC to
convert it into a colorful TV or tune it to stereophonic FM Radio. Genius
“TVGo A11” supports analog TV and it comes with remote control, audio cable,
AV input cable, IR receiving cable, and FM cable. Time shifting and schedule
recording are the key features of Genius TVGo A11 apart from being compatible
with Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005.

$100 Notebook Boots Up

Delivering a keynote address at the second Redhat Summit, Prof Nicholas
Negroponte announced that the One Laptop Per Child project has achieved a
-significant milestone, with the prototype being able to boot into Fedora Core.
This project is aimed at equipping millions of children in the developing and
underdeveloped world with an affordable computer.

India is one of the seven countries world wide selected for the launch of the
project, scheduled for next year. While $100 is the target price per laptop,
Prof Negroponte said that the initial price would be closer to $135 and that by
the year 2010, the project would be able to achieve a price as low as $50 per
unit.

World's First Blu-ray Notebook PC

Sony Corp. said it would launch the world's first -notebook personal
computer equipped with a next-generation Bluray optical disk drive in Japan. The
Japanese electronics and entertainment conglomerate said -earlier this year it
would launch notebook and desktop personal computers with Blu-ray drives in the
United States.

Sony's Blu-ray technology competes with the HD DVD format, which is
supported by another Japanese electronics maker, Toshiba Corp. At the core of
both formats are blue lasers, which have a shorter wavelength than the red
lasers used in current DVD equipment, enabling discs to store data at the higher
densities needed for high-definition movies and TV.

A Well-Endowed Notebook

Mobile consumers that want their notebooks to be equipped with entertainment
features can go in for Sony products, as Sony India has unveiled the VAIO VGN-
SZ18GP with an integration of advance -technology, super slim profile, enhanced
security and superior mobile performance. Built of carbon fiber material on the
display cabinet, the VGN-SZ18GP is equipped with a built in camera, microphone,
and bluetooth that expands communication options to support the on-the-go
lifestyles of the professional class. The VGN-SZ18GP reinvents Sony's cool
style and perfect size for optimum mobile capability and power, through the
incorporation of the latest Intel Centrino Duo Mobile Technology for smoother
and more efficient operation.