VietNamNet Bridge – The consumer PC market experienced slower growth in the last quarter of 2012 and is likely to see an even poorer scenario this year due to increasing pressure from tablets and smartphones.

Pico Plaza sells electronic products, including laptops. The PC market is facing challenges competing with tablets and smartphones.

About 680,000 PCs were sold in the fourth quarter of last year –the lowest rate for the last several years, according to the latest industry report.

IDC Viet Nam's market analyst Phan Thi Hoang Yen said PC suppliers and their distributors are now facing stockpiles of unsold PCs due to the weak demand.

While distributors and retailers have cut prices and introduced new models like the Ultra Slim laptop, people still seem to prefer tablets and smartphones.

"In 2013, the price of Ultra Slim models will need to decrease further in order to compete with attractively priced tablets and smartphones," she said.

The economic recession was also blamed for the weak PC sales.

"Viet Nam's ongoing credit crunch has left most small and medium-sized businesses and even large enterprises with financial difficulties, which could impact IT spending in 2013," said Daniel Pang, ASEAN research manager for client devices at IDC Asia/Pacific.

According to IDC's calculations, ASUS retained its lead in the market with a 17.8 per cent market share, reinforced by strong channel support and aggressive end user promotions.

Meanwhile Dell stayed in second place, with 15 per cent, as it pushed more shipments into both consumer and commercial channels.

Acer was third with 10.2 per cent, while HP fell one position to fourth with 9.1 per cent.

Although HP maintained its good performance in the commercial space, it continued to suffer in the consumer arena.

Lenovo remained in fifth position, with 6.2 per cent of market share, after bringing in more low-cost consumer notebooks to meet current market demand.

Meanwhile, the printer and multifunction peripherals (MFP) market continued to grow, gaining 32.2 per cent compared with the previous quarter.

The growth mainly came from the strength of laser technology shipments, which increased by 45 per cent quarter on quarter (QoQ).

Total laser technology shipments accounted for 77 per cent of the total market in Viet Nam, while inkjet products made up 23 per cent and grew by only 2 per cent compared to the quarter before.

Source: VNS