Low-cost touch-screen laptops to flow to Vietnam soon Microsoft and other big guys--Asus, Lenovo and HP, are going to launch a series of touch screen laptops to the Vietnamese market, targeting the popular market segment.   Vu Minh Tri, CEO of Microsoft Vietnam, told the press on the sideline of Techdays 2013, an important event of the ICT industry held in Hanoi on November 29, that Microsoft has joined forces with computer manufacturers to market more low cost touch screen laptop models. According to Tri, one of the reasons that make touch screen laptops remain unfamiliar to the majority of people is the high price of the products. Therefore, the selling prices need to become “more reasonable” to be more popular for common people. Touch screen laptops with HP, Lenovo, Sony and Asus brands, available on the Vietnamese market are priced at no less than VND8 million. Asus X202E with 11.6 inch, for example, is sold at VND8.6 million. However, the model is not highly appreciated because it is just equipped with Intel Celeron CPU which does not allow handling graphics applications well. If consumers want the laptops with Core i3, for example, they have to pay VND12 million. The senior executive of Microsoft Vietnam said the laptops with the 10.1 inch and smaller touch screen would be cheaper than the products with the 12 or 13 inch screens. One of the good sellers now available in the market is the tablet – laptop hybrid Asus Transformer T100 TA 10 inch touch screen with Chip Intel, priced at VND8.5 million. “The market segment of the laptops priced at below $600, or VND12 million, would develop stronger in the future,” Tri commented, adding that Microsoft is working with Dell, Lenovo and HP on the plan to introduce the models with reasonable prices in the Vietnamese market. He went on to say that the Microsoft’s strategy is to lower the production costs in order to make touch screen laptops reachable to the majority of people, allowing them to enjoy the outstanding features that Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 operation systems bring. Microsoft now runs special programs for original equipment manufacturers (OEM) under which it sells Windows and Office at $25-30 only. The decision helps manufacturers produce low cost products priced at below VNED8 million ($400). Tri said that the programs have shown satisfactory results, and that it is very likely that the first low cost touch screen laptops would be introduced in Vietnam in December 2013. Microsoft has also worked out with domestic partners and the OEMs in China and Taiwan to discuss how to lower the production costs further, to below $300, for example. Windows 8, marketed in late 2012 and the updated version Windows 8.1 marketed in October 2013, show the strong improvement of the Windows operation system. The new versions allow computer users, especially those using touch screen devices, to feel more convenient in their works and entertainments, to improve the security capability, better access and manage applications and data, and quickly connect through social networks. Tri, when asked at the event about the future of Nokia Vietnam, after Microsoft decided to acquire a part of the phone manufacturer, said it’s still unclear how Nokia Vietnam would operate--in an independent way or would be put under the control of Microsoft. Trong Cam, VietNamNet Bridge