With the landed price of laptops dropping by an average of R3 000 thanks to the stronger rand, it is expected that more people and companies are going to be investing in laptops. But it seems private schools are not.
This is according to Christopher Riley, CEO of laptop and mobile accessories retailer, The Notebook Company.
"We have seen a definite increase in laptop sales and rentals since the rand recovered so strongly. More individuals are incorporating mobile computers into their businesses. They would rather spend a little extra and be able to work anywhere and anytime, as opposed to being office-bound all the time. Even if it means financing their purchase due to a lack of ready cash."
Riley said, however, that his company has not had many requests from private schools regarding new equipment. "This could be because the schools are still operating on old software and networks, and there is therefore no dire need to upgrade. Another inhibiting factor could be the fact that the first schools that incorporated mobile computers may have realised that there were too many occurrences of theft and vandalism. School kids can also be pretty tough on laptops.
"Personally, I also think that schools are becoming a bit anti laptops as students are often distracted by computer games - and teachers don`t always have the time to monitor the computer usage of each and every pupil.
"The other possible issue at play is that parents have invested a lot of money in buying laptops for their children and may be wanting to get every ounce of usage out of them before they upgrade. But we are definitely seeing a slow-down in terms of schools buying laptops," said Riley.
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