Lenovo Enters Domestic Tablet War, Unveils Slew of Models


Mumbai:The Chinese computer major Lenovo, eying a top slot in the global personal computer segment, today joined the tablets war in the domestic market unveiling a slew of models. "Our strategy is to create a family of tablets suited to various entertainment and mobility requirements. We have loaded our tablets with a lot of distinct features that will make these machines very appealing," Lenovo India Managing Director RK Amar Babu told reporters in Mumbai. Lenovo Tuesday introduced ThinkPad tablet--IdeaPad K1 and IdeaPad A1--priced at Rs16,990 and upwards for business professionals. The company is planning to introduce tablets of varying sizes and platforms over the next six months to further strengthen its market position. Even as domestic tablet market is flooded with a number of products, it is still at a nascent stage. On October 5, the world's cheapest tablet PC named Aakash, priced at just Rs2,276, was launched by the government as part of its programme to expand education among students through information technology. When asked about its late entry into the market and whether it will compete with Aakash, Babu said, "we thought to get the whole range together before entering the market. With our unique features, we think there is enough space for us to expand". These tablets will be available on the shelves at all 700 exclusive Lenovo stores and its retail partners by the end of this month, he said, adding the company has set a target of 1,000 exclusive showrooms in India by the end of this year. Lenovo, which is globally at third position in the personal computers space and at number 4 in domestic market aims at improving its ranking to number 2 globally and number 3 in domestic markets, he added. When asked if the company will introduce its smart phone here, Babu said, "as of now we don't have any immediate plans for entering into this category in India. However, we have introduced smart phones in China."