Apple Bets on Notebooks

Focuses on prosumers and education segments
Apple Computer will continue to bet on notebooks as it sees good growth in this segment in the next few years.

Parminder Singh, marketing manager of Apple, said, "We believe that the notebook market will increase by leaps and bounds in the next 3 years with new users in prosumer and education segment acting as catalysts for this growth."
The Prosumer, a combination of consumer and professional was coined by Apple and denotes a customer who is technology savvy.

Rubbishing claims that Apple is not doing well, Singh said, "We are profitable in the markets we chose to address, viz., creative and education."

According to Apple, the education sector and biotechnology labs have been its major customers. Its strategy is to ensure that its products have the widest reach and usage in these segments.

In addition to its flagship products, the IMacs and the PowerMacs, it had launched its Powerbook in February this year and targeted it at corporate segment.

Powerbook 400 is priced at Rs 1,82,600 and the Powerbook 500 is for Rs 2,48,800. According to Singh, response from the reseller community to the Powerbook launch has been good.

Apple has Ingram Micro and Neoterique as its national distributors and has a network of 60 authorized resellers.

Apple is also aware that other PC manufacturers have been coming out with trendy designs but discounts them as imitations. Singh said, "We are still streets ahead on both technologies and designs."