Software and PC prices are set to surge by as much as 15% in the next two months, after the rand moved to more than R10 against the dollar last Thursday, its weakest level in four years. Price hikes will start being felt first in areas where there is limited stock, such as memory, and then, as inventory dries up, items like monitors, notebooks and PCs will incrementally become more expensive over the next 60 days. The bulk of imported electronics is priced in dollars.
The rand is now at around its weakest level in four years and, although it is currently just below R10 to the dollar, is expected to weaken further. First National Bank’s consulting economist, Cees Bruggemans, says there are several factors that suggest more dollar strength ahead.
Research company Nomura noted the rand going past R10 was a “dramatic move in just a short period”. It believes there are more risk events to play out through June, but says much of this could already be priced into the exchange rate. Although companies will hedge against the movements, this will only protect prices for a short time.
Price pain
AxizWorkgroup executive for software and enterprise, Craig Brunsden, says the rand’s performance is wreaking havoc with planning, especially within the context of recent weak market performance. “If the rand holds at these levels, we will see a dramatic increase in prices of hardware and software over the next two months… If current rates hold, expect up to a 15% price shock.”
The effect of the currency devaluation will be the highest in areas of low “in
country” inventories and short lead times, like memory, says Brunsden. Products
like monitors, printers, consumables, and PCs are generally shipped via the sea,
so there should be a two-month buffer before the full effect of the weaker rand
is felt, he explains.
Brunsden adds that the effect on products like servers and storage will be felt within a month at these levels. The increased prices should start coming through in increments over the next 60 days as the inventory coming into the country blends with existing stock, he adds. “The good news is that there is a lot of monitor, PC, notebook and component stock in country, which will buffer the price increase.”
MB Technologies CEO Glenn Fullerton says hedging policies will be adopted, but will only protect pricing to a certain extent and for a short period of time. Because most IT equipment is imported in dollars, the weaker rand is likely to have far-reaching effects across most product categories, he adds.
Fullerton notes that hedging adds to the cost of the product, although the practice does help mitigate price changes. “The challenge is not necessarily the level of the rand – it is the volatility of the currency that makes it hard to plan and that drives uncertainty in the marketplace.”
The weaker rand will have a more pronounced effect over the medium- to longer-term on those products that do not experience dollar price deflation, like consumables, while in the case of notebooks, desktop and servers, the weaker rand is – to an extent – dampened by lower dollar costs, adds Fullerton.
Higher prices will have to be passed onto consumers, although if the rand drops back to around the R9.30 to R9.50 level over the short-term, the price increase effect will be muted. “Given the rand’s track record of being both the world’s strongest currency and the weakest currency against the US dollar in the span of three years, it would be prudent to proceed with caution in predicting its trend.”
The Notebook Company expects the prices of laptops and tablets to rise by 10% and warns it cannot absorb the effects of the weaker currency. CEO Christopher Riley says: “We have been trying to absorb the currency hits, but this is no longer possible.”
Riley adds that “few companies will be able to absorb the weakness of the rand – and this, too, might not be an overnight thing”.
Mustek FD Neels Coetzee says most electronic imports are dollar-dominated and, over the past month, the weaker rand has been evident, which has a domino effect. If the exchange rate stays at around the R10 level, product inflation of about 10% on imported goods is likely, he adds.
Limited sales impact
As a result of anticipated higher prices, the current market outlook will worsen as anybody sitting on the purchasing fence will wait further before upgrading, says Brunsden. He notes that recent market data from both the client and server markets suggest consumers and corporates are watching their spending.
Brunsden notes the sector has weathered worse storms, such as when the rand tanked to R13 against the dollar, and he expects to ride through this as well. Current currency levels and speed of change are “scary”, although the currency does go through similar wobbles every few years, he adds.
Fullerton expects a mixed reaction to the weakening of the rand, with customers expecting the dollar gaining ground would speed up buying, while those who feel the rand has depreciated by too much in the short-term could adopt a wait and see attitude. “Over many years, we have experienced some degree of correlation between the exchange rate and volume, but in recent times some of the trends that held firm have been less evident.”
However, Coetzee points out that the bulk of IT spending in the market is not by consumers, but by the government, corporates and small, medium and micro-sized enterprises.
“We’ve seen in 2001 and 2008 that, generally speaking, sales volumes are not that affected by the weaker currency. Any decline in volumes will likely be offset by higher selling prices due to the weaker rand.”
Coetzee adds that PCs and laptops are not luxury items, and demand remains for the devices. He adds that, five years ago, the rand traded at around R8 to the dollar and weakened to around R10.80 during October 2008, after which it strengthened gradually to R6.60 in May 2011.
Since May 2011, the local currency started a weakening trend, and prices of ICT equipment have generally followed the same pattern, adds Coetzee.
Rechargeable lithium-based technology currently provides the best performance for your Apple notebook computer, iPod, iPhone, or iPad. You can also find this standard battery technology in many other devices. Apple batteries share the characteristics common to lithium-based technology in other devices. Like other rechargeable batteries, these batteries may eventually require replacement.
Standard Technology
Lithium-ion polymer batteries have a high power density that gives you a long battery life in a light package. And you can recharge a lithium-ion polymer battery whenever convenient, without requiring a full charge or discharge cycle.
Standard Charging
Most lithium-ion polymer batteries use a fast charge to charge your device to 80% battery capacity, then switch to trickle charging. That’s about two hours of charge time to power an iPod to 80% capacity, then another two hours to fully charge it, if you are not using the iPod while charging. You can charge all lithium-ion batteries a large but finite number of times, as defined by charge cycle.
Charge Cycle. Using and recharging 100% of battery capacity equals one full charge cycle.
A charge cycle means using all the battery’s power, but that doesn’t necessarily mean a single charge. For instance, you could listen to your iPod for a few hours one day, using half its power, and then recharge it fully. If you did the same thing the next day, it would count as one charge cycle, not two, so you may take several days to complete a cycle. Each time you complete a charge cycle, it diminishes battery capacity slightly, but you can put notebook, iPod and iPhone batteries through many charge cycles before they will only hold 80 per cent of original battery capacity.
Battery Replacement and Disposal
Rechargeable batteries have a limited number of charge cycles and may eventually need to be replaced and disposed of. Products with built-in lithium-ion polymer batteries should be replaced only by Apple or an Apple authorised service provider. Apple and its authorised service providers will ensure the spent battery is recycled properly, since batteries should always be recycled or disposed of separately from household waste. Learn more about Apple’s battery replacement options
Once an Apple product reaches the end of its useful life, Apple will help you recycle it responsibly. Learn more about Apple’s recycling programme
How to Maximise Power Use
The length of time your battery will power your device depends on how you use it. For instance, watching a DVD will use up your notebook battery’s power more quickly than simple word processing. You can follow some easy steps to maximise your notebook, iPod, iPhone or iPad battery life.
Uriel Rootshtain, Office lead at Microsoft SA. “This release unlocks new scenarios and delivers capabilities that far surpass anything available in browser-only solutions.” A little over a month after unveiling Office and Office 365, Microsoft has released a new version of Office 365 for businesses, with features like SharePoint and Yammer. Billed as Microsoft’s most complete Office cloud service to date, the release has new collaboration features, as well as offerings tailored to the needs and budgets of small, medium-sized and large organisations.
In addition to updated e-mail, video conferencing, instant messaging and calendaring services, business users can now get the Office applications they are familiar with on up to five devices, delivered as an always up-to-date cloud service.
New features in Office 365 include enhanced enterprise social capabilities with SharePoint and Yammer, and by June, it will include Lync-Skype connectivity for presence, IM and voice.
“With Office 365, everyone from large enterprises to small businesses to individual consumers can now benefit from the power of Office and the connectivity of the cloud,” said Uriel Rootshtain, Office lead at Microsoft South Africa. “This release unlocks new scenarios and delivers capabilities that far surpass anything available in browser-only solutions.”
Read More: http://www.itweb.co.za/index.php?option=com_content&catid=718&view=article&id=62084:Office-365-targets-local-small-business
South African companies caught using pirated software spent more than R5 million in 2012 in settlement and legal fees, according to the Business Software Alliance (BSA). The BSA is a trade body that represents the interests of the software industry. The BSA works with companies using a process of self-auditing to conduct investigations into whether or not they are using pirated software, says Warren Weertman, manager – legal affairs for Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA), BSA.
And the body says costs associated with these companies replacing unlicensed software jumped by R4.9 million last year – six times more than what was recorded in 2011.
South African law firm, Adams & Adams, helped the BSA in its investigation and the two organisations found that companies operating in the engineering, graphics and advertising sectors as the top offenders.
The BSA reported that the cost of engineering companies using unlicensed software was estimated at over R1.5 million followed by the graphics and advertising industries at respectively just over R700, 000 and R650, 000.
The costs comprise of settlement and legal fees that have to be paid by the company found to be using pirated software.
Chairman of the BSA South African committee, Drummond Simpson, said, “The results confirm that the use of unlicensed software continues to be a major challenge and many organisations are failing to capitalise on the benefits that a reduction in software piracy could bring.”
“Not only does the use of unlicensed software affect the economy of the country but it also makes the company vulnerable to viruses and other security risks as well as financial and reputational damage if caught,” he explained.
Mervin Miemoukanda research analyst for ICT at Frost & Sullivan told ITWeb Africa that unlicensed software accounts for 20% to 30% of the overall software market in South Africa, which makes the statistics from the BSA close to the reality.
“The number makes sense and it is mainly due to the sales of counterfeit PCs and mobile devices in the country,” he said.
He added, “These PCs and mobile devices are usually loaded with pirated software from Microsoft and other software vendors.”
Miemoukanda and the BSA agree that education is the key to ensuring that companies understand the far reaching implications of using pirated or unlicensed software.
“It is quite a huge task that government institutions and software companies should start educating students in universities and schools, in general the population to use licensed software,” he said.
“Yes, it’ll be very difficult to prevent people and small businesses from using unlicensed software, however education is key because as most people are not aware of adverse consequences of using unlicensed software,” he concluded.
According to the BSA across the EMEA region the use of pirated software cost businesses more than $16.5 million in 2012.
Apple today released iOS 6.1, which adds LTE support for more carriers and the ability to purchase Fandango movie tickets via Siri, among other things. “iOS 6 is the world’s most advanced mobile operating system, and with nearly 300 million iPhone, iPad and iPod touch devices on iOS 6 in just five months, it may be the most popular new version of an OS in history,” Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing, said in a Monday statement. “iOS 6.1 brings LTE support to more markets around the world, so even more users can enjoy ultrafast Safari browsing, FaceTime video calls, iCloud services, and iTunes and App Store downloads.”
The update adds 36 iPhone carriers and 23 iPad carriers to the list of those that support LTE, something Apple CEO Tim Cook first tipped during an earnings call last week. LTE is available on iPhone 5 and the cellular versions of the iPad mini and fourth-generation iPad.
LTE will now be available from carriers in regions like Italy, Denmark, Finland, Switzerland, the Philippines, and several Middle Eastern countries, Cook said last week. A full list of those carriers is available on Apple’s website.
Meanwhile, users with a Siri-enhanced iOS device will be able to purchase movie tickets via the Fandango app using Apple’s voice assistant, but only in the U.S. On the music front, iTunes Match subscribers will also be able to download individual songs from iCloud.
In addition, Apple said iOS 6.1 adds a new button to reset its Advertising Identifier, which controls how your Web activity on the iOS device is shared with advertisers. You can find it via Settings > General > About > Advertising.
To see if iOS 6.1 is available for your phone, navigate to Settings > General > Software Update. The update requires at least 1GB of storage to download and will take about a half hour over Wi-Fi. You can also connect your device to your PC and download via iTunes.
Your device will need to reboot once the update is installed. You will then have to re-enter your Apple ID credentials for iCloud, iMessage, and FaceTime purposes.
Apple released its last update, iOS 6.0.2, in December, which addressed problems with Wi-Fi connectivity.
Using the 141,900 speed test results over the last three months from the Johannesburg server, MyBroadband calculated the average download speed, upload speed and latency for tests from 10Mbps ADSL connections.
The ensure accuracy, MyBroadband used IP address filtering, survey input and other mechanisms.
The following table provides an overview of the average 10Mbps ADSL results per network.
| ISP account |
Download (kbps) |
Upload (kbps) |
Latency (ms) |
| Web Africa ADSL |
4,639 |
563 |
80 |
| Internet Solutions Consumer ADSL |
4,279 |
632 |
61 |
| Telkom ADSL |
4,070 |
517 |
70 |
| MWEB |
3,901 |
573 |
59 |
| Cybersmart |
3,146 |
603 |
94 |
