In the face of strong competition presented by other form factors such as laptops, netbooks and tablets, the desktop market in Southeast Asia has managed to sustain its performance, driven primarily by the resurgence in popularity of the all-in-one (AIO) desktop. According to global leading market research company GfK who tracks desktop sales across Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, consumers bought nearly 800,000 units of desktop worth over USD488 million in the first six months of 2011; almost one in 10 of which was an all-in-one desktop.
GfK Asia’s retail audit reflected a stabilised performance of the desktop market over the last three years in spite of the introduction and growing popularity of similar and more portable technologies. While desktop sales have been witnessing gradual declines, it is the all-in-one segment that has been slowly expanding in the recent years to uphold the overall performance of the desktop industry. In the first half of 2011, 44,000 units worth over USD44 million were sold in Southeast Asia. This reflects a 10 percent volume growth over the same period last year, and 100 percent growth in volume when compared to 2009.
"The popularity of the all-in-one desktop computer has given rise to lower price points which have directly been fuelling consumer demand," commented Gerard Tan, regional account director, IT & Office at GfK Asia. "Today, its average selling price is approximately USD1,000 as compared to USD1,250 in 2009."
Across the six Southeast Asia markets, Indonesia and Thailand were the biggest contributors to the overall demand for desktops in the region, having sold 244,300 and 239,400 units respectively in the first six months of the year. However, when it boils down specifically to the AIO segment, one out of every two (50 percent) AIOs purchased in the region or 22,000 units were sold in Thailand. (Chart 1)
"It is interesting to note that Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand have all been showing promising growth in the AIO segment this year, each registering an average of 20 percent growth despite the fact that their respective market’s desktop category had a considerably lower showing," observed Tan. "AIOs are becoming increasingly affordable nowadays and with most models coming equipped with 21" and above LCD or LED display screens, it is an attractive option to consider over the other form factors." (Chart 2)
"With the renewed interest of consumers in all-in-one PCs, we can be expecting the marketplace to be heating up once again as manufacturers will be refocusing their efforts in this area to improve their offerings to consumers," concluded Tan.
