Laptop sales pave way for rumored Apple tablet

SUNNYVALE, USA: Laptop demand is enjoying strong growth this back to school season according to the Retrevo Pulse, a publicly-available index that maps daily price and demand trends in the consumer electronics industry across 40 categories and more than 4,000 products.

Despite a 20 percent decline in the average selling price of laptops, August demand in terms of dollars was up 40 percent from July. During last year’s back-to-school season demand was up only 20 percent.

“With the economy under stress and the growing popularity of netbooks, one could expect laptop sales to suffer but that does not appear to be the case,” says Vipin Jain, Retrevo CEO.

“The Pulse Report suggests that shoppers have an appetite for affordable laptops and that netbooks are fueling that appetite. Innovation from Apple could easily accelerate the adoption of portable computers if they decide to introduce a low-priced tablet-like computer.”

Retrevo’s Gadgetology study, released earlier this month, indicated 58 percent of students would spend less than $750 on their next laptop. Jain says, “An innovative product like the rumored Apple Tablet has the chance to hit a home run if Apple can find the right price point. Let’s just hope their market success goes the way of the iPhone, and not the Newton.”

“With the upcoming release of Windows 7 from Microsoft, many believe that netbook and lower-priced laptop sales will continue to increase,” says Jain. “Good technology at affordable prices is good news for consumers. Retrevo will be closely watching the Pulse demand index to report any market shifts resulting from these innovations.”

Will HDTV manufacturers and retailers pay penalty for increasing prices too soon?

SUNNYVALE, USA: Retrevo asks, "Did HDTV manufacturers and retailers shoot themselves in the foot by increasing prices for HDTV sets as much as 30%?"

Data from the Retrevo Pulse, which includes a publicly available index from Retrevo that maps daily trends in consumer electronics, indicates a disproportionate drop in demand for HDTV compared to other consumer electronics such as digital cameras, camcorders and DVD/Blu-ray Disc players.

According to Retrevo’s index, prices for HDTV products began to rise in mid-January, with the average selling price surging approximately 30% from January to mid-April. During the same time period, Retrevo’s index shows consumer demand for HDTVs continued to weaken, while other electronics product categories remained flat or increased slightly. Retrevo speculates that high prices may have discouraged buyers with a resulting decrease in demand.

“It is typically not a good strategy to increase prices at a time when consumers are hunkering down and trying to save money,” said Vipin Jain, CEO of Retrevo. “Reduced advertising on the part of brands and retailers, as well as some seasonality, has likely also contributed to weak demand. The good news for consumers is that our April data revealed that HDTV prices have leveled off and might even be heading back down. So, if you are in the market for a new HDTV, now is a good time to start tracking prices and looking for deals. Retrevo will continue to track HDTV trends and deals throughout May and report back at the end of the month.”