Five Key Indian Consumers’ Preferences in Mobility

The era of personal computing, the PC has continued to stay relevant as it is the best multi-faceted device for content creation. However, with hectic lifestyles and the need to be always productive on-the-go, users are demanding access to information on a secondary device such as a tablet or a smartphone.

The end-users look for the best hardware along with great productivity, multiple devices, and great cloud storage, all in one package. Based on this, Lenovo and Microsoft recently joined hands to provide Microsoft Office 365 on premium Lenovo laptops. With the pre-loaded Office 365 Personal on Lenovo devices, consumers can use all the familiar applications such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Outlook, Publisher, Access, across multiple platforms (a PC or Mac, and a tablet (including iPad and Android tablet) as well as a smartphone).

India is the first market for Lenovo to offer Office 365 Personal pre-loaded on their premium devices, which demonstrates the potential of an emerging market like India towards shaping consumer trends.

“India is a very important part of Lenovo’s global strategy, owing to its immense potential in PC penetration,” Shailendra Katyal, Director- Home and Small Business, Lenovo India.

He also added that Lenovo gets a lot of feedback and insights from its Indian users and apply the learnings in developing markets like India, Indonesia and Brazil. “India is and will remain a strategic market for us,” said Katyal.

One Device: Work and Play

In the era of ‘smart connected devices’, customers are increasingly connecting their PC or laptop, which is the primary device, to their tablet and smartphone, which is the secondary device in order to get easier access to information on the go.

“Today, users are demanding technologies that enable this integration seamlessly across not only different devices but across different platforms. Instead of multiple tech devices, customers want one device for both work and play,” said Katyal.

Adding on the same, Alok B. Lall, Director – Microsoft Office Division, Microsoft India said that with the increasing user base of mobile devices in the market where the PC remains the most dominant computing device, the users, in addition to the great hardware, expect the availability of the same content and seamless sync across different devices (mobile, PC and Tablet) and different platforms (Windows, Android, iOS) which they use.

Convertible devices

It looks like the all-in-one category is gaining a lot of traction amongst Indian consumers. “The convertible is a form factor that combines the best of a laptop and a tablet in one device, making it the perfect choice for users who don’t want to carry two or more individual devices,” said Katyal. Lenovo have been investing in innovation to tap the fastest growing segment of convertible devices (like Yoga, Helix, & Horizon), with an optimistic approach that the PC market will continue to expand with even more exciting innovations on the horizon.

High-Performance and Gaming Experience

Besides traditional PC usage, the youth are looking at high-performance devices for personal usage scenarios such as gaming. There is a large population of active gamers who are buying such devices, pointed out Lenovo’s Katyal.

“This brings us to the need for consumers to experience and purchase the best of these devices under one roof. This feedback led to the launch of our Smart Connected Devices stores that are akin to the stores in Hong Kong, Tokyo and the US, and bring the best of Lenovo experience under one roof. The highlight of the new retail format is a dedicated zone for shoppers to experience audio, gaming and other product usage scenarios,” he told.

Ultra -portable devices

With travel time becoming increasingly longer and travel itself becoming frequent, users are demanding tech devices that provide a longer battery life, of more than 8 hour-9 hours so that they are always connected. Moreover, mobile devices need to be lightweight and slim so that they are ultra-portable and easy to carry.

“Further users are looking for pre-installed apps like Office 365 that help them use  all the familiar applications such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Outlook, Publisher, Access, across multiple platforms ( a PC or Mac, and a tablet (including iPad and Android tablet) as well as a smartphone), which is pre-loaded on our premium devices. We are seeing a lot of advantages of tablets coming to PCs with great screen resolution, longer battery life and instant on/off. But tablets are not replacing PCs. They have their own usage and space,” said Katyal.

Interestingly, according to Lenovo’s findings, 80 per cent of tablets are not leaving home. PCs have become thin and light and they are also not going away. People still need them for their productive usage and it is the primary device for content consumption.

Katyal said that there is a huge demand for ultra-portable devices in the Indian market. We are seeing a certain degree of device fatigue as consumers don’t want to own multiple, bulky devices, leading to a rise in the popularity of convertibles that can be used in a variety of situations.

Backup and Storage

Not just that, there is a demand for the consistent experience. In the backdrop of recent user trends like being connected while on the move and increased Internet penetration, mobile devices are not just being used for consuming content but also for creation.

“Another interesting trend is the backing up of data like photographs, videos, songs and documents on cloud storage which could be accessed from any device any time. We are seeing an increase in the user base as well as storage usage of OneDrive,” said Microsoft’s Lall.

While talking about the consumer trends in India, he gathered that there a lot of potential for entry-level devices in the Indian market. However, in India there is no size that fits all as there is a market for premium devices and an equally growing segment with price conscious customers who will want a product that offers more than just entry-level computing.