Suzuki Technology formally launched its laptop line in the Philippines in Cebu City, promising speed, price and performance to attract the fast growing entry-level market segment.

The company has nothing to do with the motor vehicle brand, but it claims to have the international trademark for all IT products. The Singapore-based company took its name from its Japanese cofounder.

“Price-wise, we are on equal level with other entry-level brands but in terms of specs, we are ahead,” the company’s Singaporean sales manager Andy Ng said. “We have a competitive price and a higher specification and we try to add value to the product.”

By adding value, Ng meant freebies. They are bundling software, optical mouse, flash drives or speakers to get customers to notice the brand.

The strategy has worked well for the 12-year-old company. It claims to have a presence in Southeast Asia especially in Indonesia and Singapore. It also has a chunk of the market in the Middle East. This year, the company hopes to get into the Philippines, Australia, New Zealand, the Americas and Eastern Europe as well as India.

The brand is doing well less than a year since it was introduced in the Philippines, country dealer Avelino Dy Relucio of Gilmore Computer center said. Dealers based in Cebu  report that their stocks are all sold out and that Suzuki Technology is still scrambling to deliver units to meet the demand.

With its Taiwan-made netbook prices as low as P15,000 and full-sized Intel Core 2 Duo-powered laptops at just over P20,000, Suzuki is a good buy for students and the price-conscious market. The company said it posted a 30-percent increase in sales last quarter.

It is also bannering its accessories line including its longer-lasting polymer-based laptop batteries. They are also launching an external battery pack product, which can give an extra 6 hours’ life to laptops. A dice-sized 2-gigabyte MP3 player is also about to be launched. The company is also planning to hold a nationwide road show and even build Suzuki Technology concept shops in Manila and Cebu.

Headquartered in Singapore, Suzuki Technology Pte. Ltd. aspires to become a global brand in the IT industry. Suzuki products include laptops, optical drives, memory products, SumoDrive and many more under house brand Suzuki.