Netbook demand picks up

Stall attendants display a netbook at the BCS ICT fair in Dhaka yesterday. Netbooks are winning the hearts of business-people and students. Photo: Amran HossainMd Hasan

It has a slim look. Tech-savvy customers are gradually convinced by mobility and affordable prices. So is the indication in the sales of netbooks, the latest entry in Bangladesh's portable computer market. Light and easy to browse, these sleek mini-notebooks are now gaining popularity, mainly among businessmen and students.

Around 15,000 netbooks of different brands have so far been sold in Bangladesh since 2007. The prices range from Tk 25,000 to Tk 40,000 each.

"I am looking for a design which I can carry always with me like a folder and get connected with the internet," Habibur Rahman, a businessman, told The Daily Star at the BCS ICT World Fair.

Netbooks -- also known as sub-notebooks -- are a rapidly evolving category of small, light and inexpensive laptop computers suited for general computing and accessing web-based applications.

After their inception in late 2000, smaller netbooks optimised for low weight and low cost. Having smaller screen and keyboard, they offer reduced specification and computing power. Netbooks range in size from below 5 inches to over 13 inches and weigh between 2-3 pounds.

Netbooks entered Bangladesh when Asus unveiled its first netbook, ASUS Eee PC, on the global market in late 2007.

Since 2007, around 5,000 Asus netbooks have been sold here, according to Global Brand Private Limited, the sole distributor of Asus.

"Businessmen and students are the main customers of netbooks," said Mohammad Mizanur Rahman, the distributor's manager (sales).

Bangladesh's PC (personal computer) penetration is one of the lowest in the world (4.5 per 1,000). However, the growth rate is quite impressive. A recent study indicates that the PC growth rate in the country is around 40 percent per year, according to Bangladesh Computer Samity.

Industry insiders said netbooks' popularity depends on availability of the internet. Bangladesh's only 4 percent internet penetration rate is not a good sign for sellers.

However, SM Rashed-Uz-Zaman, business manager of Computer Source, a leading computer seller, said queries for netbooks have increased gradually.

At the BCS fair, his company has sold 100 laptops, 20 of which are netbooks.

Computer Source brought HP, Fujitsu, Dell and Portlink netbooks to Bangladesh eight months ago. The company sold more than 1,800 netbooks.

Around 3,000 Acer brand netbooks were sold in the last one and a half years in Bangladesh market. "Price is one of the major factors for which customers prefer netbooks," said Shaharul Haque, sales consultant of Executive Technologies, the sole distributor of Acer in Bangladesh,

It is estimated that almost thirty times more netbooks were sold in 2008. Global netbook makers sold 11.4 million netbooks in 2008, which was 70 percent more than in 2007. The year 2007 witnessed sales of only four million netbooks on the global market.

For 2009, sales are projected to jump to 35 million, while figure will reach 139 million in 2013, according to ABI Research, a market intelligence company specialising in global connectivity and emerging technology.

In Bangladesh, laptops have become the first choice in case of buying personal PC. However sellers are not ready to think netbooks will be a segment that may replace laptops soon.

"Multi-featured laptops are replacing desktop. But Bangladesh portable computer market trend does not show any sign of any replacement of laptops," said Haque. "Low penetration of internet is a hurdle."

hasan@thedailystar.net