Now a Nano for your lap

Tata's one-lakh car has a parallel in computers now. Low-cost laptops being launched in India next week are for most purposes as good as their premium counterparts, minus the bells and whistles, says R Krishna

We did it because people said it couldn't be done
–– Ratan Tata, speaking at the launch of Tata Nano

The device is just about 9inch wide. It has a keyboard with a seven-inch screen, flanked by speakers. At 900gm, it weighs less than some hardbacks.

The keys are slightly small, but feel sturdy. We are talking about the Asus EEE PC, which will soon be available in India. The most endearing feature of the device, though, is its price tag –– Rs18,000.

Apart from Asus, HCL, too, will be launching its low-cost X-Series that will cost around Rs14,000. George Paul, executive vice president, marketing, HCL Infosystems says that the MiLeap X-series offers "ultra portable form factor and true internet experience on the move, which will cater to as new class of usage."

Both products defy easy categorisation as they are much smaller and lighter than the regular laptops (see box).

According to research firm Gartner, laptop sales in India nearly doubled last year. So, why would companies, doing so well with their premium products in the market, want to develop and sell low-cost laptops now?

"The question you should ask is, 'Why not?'," says Francis Kao, business development manager, Asus. Just like Tata Motors, laptop manufacturers have realised there is a huge market at the lower end waiting to be tapped.

Apart from sub-notebooks such as the EEE PC, low-cost laptops that have the regular 14-inch screen are available in the market today.

Diptarup Chakraborti, principal research analyst at Gartner, explains, "Owning a laptop is a status symbol. Now the prices between desktops and laptops are reaching parity, and the performance and battery life of a laptop have improved even at the entry level."

So, Acer, which advertises its premium laptops heavily, now also sells the Aspire 3682 that costs less than Rs20,000. Apart from sub-notebooks like HCL X-series and Asus EEE PC, there are many full-featured laptops in the Rs20,000-Rs30,000 range, which are opening up the market from the bottom.

Or as Vivek Paliwal, business head, IT & gaming, Next Retail, puts it: "This converts an aspiring customer to a customer who will buy the product."

Low-cost is more a matter of minimalism than compromising on quality. In the basic features such as processor, memory and storage, or uses such as Internet connectivity, they may be as good as they need to be for most users.

The extra features in higher-end laptops, that cost between Rs35,000 to Rs50,000, have also a lot to do with the look and feel. Such laptops could be lightweight, and feature a high-end OS like Windows Vista.

They are available in a variety of colours from piano black to cherry red. They may also come with in-built web-cameras, biometric security systems, and international warranties. These are some of the bells and whistles that a low-cost laptop will not have.

"Products have become so good in the middle and lower segments, that a normal user doesn't require a high-end configuration any more," says Paliwal, adding that. informed consumers can often be guided toward lower-cost options that cater to all their needs.

"I see a lot of conversion happening as affordability comes into the picture. Laptops with Intel or AMD-based processors are now available for Rs30,000. This has really changed the market. Moreover, the laptops that cost around Rs30,000 pack enough power for the user to edit office documents, browse the Internet, listen to music, watch pictures, and view movies on DVDs," he says.

As for the new sub-Rs20,000 laptops, they pare down the features to the bare essentials. Kao says that Asus wanted to build a product for children, women, and the elderly. The idea, he says, was to make a laptop that was as simple to use as possible.

"We put whatever was necessary and removed the rest. The low price point was achieved by trimming the features, not quality."

The EEE PC has a flash-drive which makes the device lighter, but the storage space is less as a result –– there is an SD-card slot to take care of your storage needs. There is no optical drive as well, which means that you can't view DVDs or play CDs. The screen is much smaller than regular laptops, it takes some time to adjust to the small keys.

Yet, in the US, where the lightweight EEE PC has already been launched, it appears to have appealed not only to the consumers Asus originally targeted, but also to the regular user. The price tag and minimalism have many takers.