ASUS moves steadily into education sector

ASUS South Africa has been steadily moving into the education sector, expanding on its growth in the consumer segment, which saw the PC manufacturer beat out the likes of Dell, HP and Lenovo to claim the number one market share position at certain points over the last 12 months.

The first major step in the drive into education was the 3 000 laptops supplied to Walter Sisulu University (WSU) in February 2021. Walter Sisulu was one of the first universities to embrace the need for rapid digital investment for its students to enable remote learning and equally advancing digital transformation at the university.

Nkosinathi Zulu, IT Director, Walter Sisulu University, explained that the extended lockdown in 2020 caused the university to adapt and embrace online learning technology. The laptops, part of a larger programme in digital infrastructure development, will assist first-year students with remote learning, since under lockdown level three, only 33% of students are allowed on the campus and residences, so as to adapt to and not hinder the academic year, which mainly consisted of final-year students. WSU was the first institution to roll-out its remote learning to its students under the COVID-19 national lockdown regulations. The devices were distributed over two months in the Eastern Cape province.

ASUS met certain standard certification and requirements to supply WSU with the laptops, ensuring students have the functionality and capability for remote learning. A total of 3 000 X543s were used in the procurement process. “The advent of networks and pervasive information technology has transformed education far beyond the limits of the traditional classroom. Many schools are attaching increasing importance to their on-campus information infrastructure, eliminating gaps in network coverage, implementing large-scale cloud computing services, automating library services, introducing high-quality computer classrooms and computer labs with flexible computing capabilities,” said Juan Mouton, Country Marketing Manager, ASUS South Africa.

To empower learning at home, ASUS has developed solutions that optimise the video conferencing experience, make learning flexible and protect students from excessive screen time. To adapt to the new normal of remote learning, ASUS devices provide an array of features, including ASUS two-way AI noise-cancelling audio, 3D noise-reduction cameras and Intel WiFi 6 to ensure uninterrupted virtual classroom experiences. World-facing cameras, versatile 360 hinges and stylus support provide the flexibility to help students learn in engaging and inspiring ways. On top of this, ASUS devices are built to be both rugged and secure. ASUS devices not only withstand everyday knocks, spills and drops, but also feature multiple layers of security to protect your device and network from online threats.

Currently, ASUS is preparing for the back-to-school period and has invested heavily in the acquisition of education related products, ensuring there is a sufficient supply of education focused product in the market. Some of these investments include LTE capabilities on the BR1000 model as well as focusing on developing their Chromebook capacity to allow for a broad range of educational scenarios and early tech-literacy in young children.

ASUS offers one of the widest range of user specific products for the professional and education sectors. From Chromebooks for early development to BR1100 for mobility, its ranges also extend to specialised PC hardware for those entering the STEM fields and data science and 3D design sectors, with products like TUF Gaming and the all-powerful StudioBook.