Work from home, quarantine trigger demand for laptops

THE unprecedented surge in people working from home has caused a spike in demand for laptops.

Wilson Ng, owner of Ngenius and Ng Khai Development Corp., told SunStar Cebu that many companies have made bulk orders of laptops as they rush to build virtual offices and allow their employees to work from home.

“There are many companies buying. However, we have been in short supply because of the China shutdown, and while we are able to serve some, we have to turn away most,” Ng said.

Factories in China are still struggling to reopen after the coronavirus shut down its economy. Many businesses remain uncertain on how to sustain operations without the vital goods from the world’s biggest supplier and one of the largest economic powerhouses.

Chinese manufacturers assemble more than 80 percent of smartphones for Apple, Samsung and other brands, as well as half of the world’s personal computers and a big share of home appliances and other goods.

“Now it is also difficult to serve because everywhere in the world, many planes and cargoes are not moving. We have a few stocks still locked in the malls, but the demand is huge. Many companies are ordering by the hundreds,” Ng said.

Netflix

He also noted a spike in the buying of pocket Wifi devices, which he noted “are not good enough to use now.”

“Our cell data is too slow for a business process management usage. The internet is overused now as the whole world is staying at home and watching videos,” he said.

Because of this, the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) requested the online streaming platform Netflix to cut its streaming bitrate, meaning adjust the video quality, to ease data congestion for the duration of the enhanced community quarantine.

The NTC said the measure will help free up bandwidth as increased demand by subscribers may risk overloading network capacity during the quarantine period.

“Data consumption is expected to surge due to the work from home arrangements as well as increased government, private and education demands,” the NTC said in a press release.

Netflix Pte Ltd. agreed to the measure, the NTC said.

“Netflix also conveyed solidarity and support to the Philippine government’s efforts, recognizing that the internet should run smoothly at this time,” it said.

The NTC added that Netflix also developed a way to reduce its traffic on telecommunications networks by 25 percent while maintaining the quality of service.

“Netflix added that its consumers should continue to get the quality that comes with their plan—whether it’s ultra-high, high or standard definition. Netflix’s move will provide significant relief to congested networks for the next 30 days,” it read. (with PR)

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