Acer has come up with a spate of new launches in the personal computing segment, with a mix of traditional devices like laptops coupled with new ones like a bicycle computer, as it looks to instill some life into an industry which has been declining steadily over the last six quarters.

Addressing the media at the IFA Berlin event, Jason Chen, President and CEO of Acer, unveiled more than half a dozen products, from gadgets that can track pets, to Virtual Reality (VR) Head-Mounted Displays that IMAX will use in the future.

Talking about the products, Chen asserted that the technology major, which is in its 40th year of business, sees opportunities in an increasingly commoditised computer and electronics hardware market, which is also seeing a downward slump in demand.

Worldwide PC shipments totalled 64.8 million units in the first quarter of 2016, a 9.6-per-cent decline from the first quarter of 2015, according to Gartner.

The Taiwanese company has embarked on a twin strategy of bringing in differentiation in its existing product line – such as a laptop ‘Swift 7’, which is less than 1 inch, weighs around a kilo, comes with the i7 Intel processor, and has about 9 hours of battery life.

Acer also launched a gaming laptop, which for the first time comes with a curved screen and features such as eye tracking, which equals the performance of a machine like Alienware.

“Passion and innovation will define the PC industry going forward,” Jerry Kao, President (IT Products), Acer, told BusinessLine .

However, prices of devices are yet to be finalised, a fact which has played into the minds of Indian consumers’ lack of enthusiasm for buying gaming devices. However, Acer officials said this laptop will be priced ‘attractively’ when launched in India.

Currently, Acer has a 37 per cent market share in the gaming monitor market, according to industry estimates.

While these are devices in its existing businesses, the company is eyeing new category of devices such as Pawbo+, an interactive pet camera that lets you keep an eye and chat with your pets.

Similarly, it has launched a cycling computer device called Xplova, a company it acquired recently, which helps cyclists broadcast their journey to friends and also aid in data such as heart rate, speed and other things.

“Lifetyle products are seeing a pick-up and we see demand coming from India,” said Chandrahas Panigrahi, Senior Director and Consumer Business Head, Acer India.

The writer is in Berlin at the invitation of Acer

Related Topics