HP Inc to launch affordable 'Always Connected' PCs in India this month

New Delhi: PC and printer major HP Inc is gearing up to launch affordable Always Connected PCs, which currently come with a price tag of Rs 1 lakh and above, for the mid-segment mainstream users this month.

Likely to be launched around mid-June, the ‘Always Connected' PCs from HP will target small and medium businesses and individual professionals who are working from home in the social distancing times and require next-gen devices to ease workloads, reliable sources told IANS on Tuesday.

New HP PCs are likely to be priced at least half of the current prices for ‘Always connected' premium devices, to help mainstream users get access to premium features.

These devices would support faster video downloads, smoother video calls and other network data intensive activities.

HP's Spectre and Elite Dragonfly PCs currently offer 'Always Connected' features but these are premium notebooks and cost over 1 lakh and above.

According to the latest report from the International Data Corporation (IDC), in anticipation of an upcoming lockdown, many businesses increased their orders for notebooks, which resulted in a 7.1 per cent YoY increase for this segment in March quarter.

"Enterprises across all segments seem to be preferring notebooks over desktops during the current scenario of work from home under the lockdown," said Bharath Shenoy, Market Analyst, PC Devices, IDC India.

"As companies and employees try to adjust to remote working requirements, the immediate task is to make the workforce functional with minimal losses in productivity. Hence, the demand for notebooks in the enterprise segment is expected to remain strong in the coming quarters," Shenoy added.

HP Inc retained the top position in the overall Indian PC market with a share of 28.2 per cent in the first quarter this year.