HP to pamper women with sleek laptops

Global information technology giant Hewlett-Packard (HP) is set to launch its special lines of products, targeting women and the youth in India.

"This year, we will launch exclusive product lines and marketing campaigns for women and the youth," said Dennis Mark, vice-president "" marketing "" SMB and TQS (total customer experience, quality and services), personal systems group, HP Asia Pacific and Japan.

"Women usually look for easy mobility and sleek looks, so the women's product line will be based on those premises. Texture of the body of the laptop is another factor that women take into consideration while purchasing, so our products will reflect that," he added.

The youths, on the other hand, pay more attention to designs, colours and special features, said Mark.

HP recently launched its Limited Edition 'Verve' HP imprint design notebook in India. Last year, HP in collaboration with MTV launched its Take Action.

Make Art "" a global design competition inviting the youths around the world to create graphics for a special edition HP notebook PC. The notebook is expected to be available to consumers worldwide in March 2008.

"Our marketing strategy will also be unique. We will pay more emphasis on web-based advertising to enhance our reach to the youth and women," explained Mark.

Both the product lines are expected to hit the market within the three months. These will be launched under the HP Pavillion range and not Compaq, so they will be priced accordingly.

Dismissing conjenctures that HP would jump onto the "low-cost PC" bandwagon, Mark said: "We believe providing quality products, so just for the sake of bringing down the price tag we will not compromise on the features that we provide. We have the ability and manufacturing capability to bring out such low-cost PCs but we have built a brand name that speaks much more than the price tag alone."