Notebook Vendors Anticipate Strong Back-to-School Sales

Posted 06/17/2010 at 6:34am | by Paul Lilly

0

Comments

Print

Perspective is a funny thing. For those who are in grade school, the last thing they want to think about at this early stage of the summer is the dreaded back-to-school shopping season. But for Quanta Computer, Compal Electronics, and Wistron -- three first-tier notebook makers -- the back-to-school rush signals money in the bank.

All three notebook makers are expecting channel demand to ramp up significantly in the third quarter as a direct result of the back-to-school season. Internally, Wistron expects to see sales jump by 15-20 percent, while on the record the company is saying 10 percent. Quanta, meanwhile, predicts 10-15 percent sequential shipment growth in Q3, while Compal's expectations are the most conservative at 5-10 percent growth.

The jump in sales comes as good news to all three notebook makers, all of which have been feeling the crunch from Europe's bond crisis. But while notebook shipment performance was negatively impacted in April and May, several vendors, including HP and Acer, have since begun increasing orders and are already hammering out back-to-school promotions. HP, for example, is planning to offer a bundle that includes a Compaq series notebook with a printer, while other vendors are toying with the idea of giving away a netbook with each qualified notebook purchase.