Asia's High-Tech Companies Out in Force at Computex Taipei

Asia's largest consumer electronics event is proving to be a show of strength by makers of PCs, tablets and communication products in the region.

With close to 2,000 exhibitors spread across more than 5,000 booths, the 2012 Taipei International Information Technology Show (Computex Taipei) is expected to attract some 40,000 international buyers to create potential business worth almost US$30 billion. Show organizer Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA) is optimistic that strong demand from emerging markets in Asia will drive sales in the annual show, despite the troubled business climate in Europe and the US.

Microsoft and Intel's new rollouts, as well as the ultrabook, tablet PC, multi-touch and cloud computing devices, are taking centerstage at this year's event. Microsoft's release of its Windows 8 operating system preview version subsequently had major Asian PC vendors launch their latest ultrabook models as well as Win8 tablet and notebook PCs. New ultrabook models with touch that will be reaching the market this year include the Samsung Series 5, Asus Taichi, Acer Aspire S7, Lenovo Yoga and other designs from Taiwanese ODMs such as Inventec and Pegatron.

As cloud computing increasingly drives demand for servers and storage equipment, Acer held a press conference themed "Explore Beyond Limits" to spell out its plans on cloud computing in the future, as well as to showcase various related products at the show. Meanwhile Asustek, another Taiwan-based company, launched Asus Cloud Appliance, a server jointly developed locally with Cloud System Software Institute, to target the enterprise segment for private cloud storage and services. 

A hot topic discussed during the Summit Forum at the show concerns the rise of the "Post-PC Era" - a term made popular by late Apple CEO Steve Jobs during the inaugural launch of the company's iPad. Definitions of this so-called era are still widely debated within the industry. Many research firms agree that it does not represent the imminent demise of desktop PCs and notebooks. Rather, the explosive growth of smartphones, tablets and other mobile devices has transformed the Internet experience for consumers spurred on by popular social networking sites.

Computex Taipei will conclude on Saturday, June 9, 2012. All in all, TAITRA expects the show to generate a quarter of Taiwan's total export value for ICT products in 2011.