Lenovo Thailand, the local unit of the world's largest computer maker, is renewing its push to gather market share for tablets after it declined in the past couple of years.
Thailand and the Philippines have been selected for the debut of Lenovo's new bigger-screen tablet.
"We plan to more than double our share in the tablet market to 5% this year from less than 2% last year by creating a new segment," country manager Jeerawut Wongpimonporn said.
Globally, Lenovo is ranked third for tablets.
Last Thursday, Lenovo Thailand introduced the Lenovo Phab Plus tablet, which has a bigger screen and smartphone functions.
Consumer business manager Takon Niyomthai said the new niche offering had high growth potential, as the device could eat into the smartphone market.
The premium tablet comes equipped with a 6.8-inch high-definition display screen, two gigabytes of memory, a dual SIM and 4G connectivity.
It can serve data-intensive users, gamers and video viewers.
Targeting teenagers and young adults, the tablet costs 11,990 baht. Rivals with the same specifications cost about 15,000 baht.
The company expects to sell nearly 10,000 of the devices each month.
Mr Jeerawut said the local phablet market with a display size of six to seven inches made up only 2% of the total.
However, this segment has growth potential and can dent market demand for 10,000-baht smartphones, 1 million of which are sold a month, he said.
Lenovo has appointed Suzy from South Korean girl group Miss A as the tablet's brand ambassador to boost its brand among teenagers throughout Asean.
The local tablet market is expected to reach 2 million units, with 90% priced below 5,000 baht.
This year, PCs are expected to contribute 70% of revenue, smartphones 20% and tablets 10%.
The global PC market continues to decline, contracting by 5-10% this year, but Lenovo's Asean business has not been affected much since the region is growing.
"The government's stimulus programme will drive the economy in the fourth quarter, helping us to achieve double-digit revenue growth this fiscal year," Mr Jeerawut said.
