A dumping ground for old stock?

Dubai: Consumers at Gitex Shopper are divided on whether the event is a chance to pick up the latest IT innovations or just a dumping ground for retailers' old stock.

Many shoppers have travelled from across the GCC to pick up a good deal or investigate new models.

Some said only 10 per cent of all products on sale are new to the market, while others were more impressed with product prices and the range on offer.

"I come to this event every year and I think it's perfect. There's a lot of new technology and it should be extended another day," said Aus Najim, an Iraqi IT manager working in Dubai.

Faheem Rehman travelled from Abu Dhabi just for Gitex Shopper and says the event is definitely not just a dumping ground.

"I come here just to see what's new on the market. I don't see much difference in the prices compared to standard values, but there are a lot of new products on sale," he said.

Others were less impressed with the product range.

"I was a bit disappointed with the event. There's nothing much of real interest in terms of new products," said one consumer, who had came from Sharjah and wished to remain anonymous.

Another consumer said he estimated that only 10 per cent of the products on sale were new to the market.

The retailers themselves strongly deny that they are using the event to clear out their old ranges.

"We are launching an entire new range of laptops with almost every brand. It's very important for us to be seen at the leading edge of technology. We have no aged or obsolete products on our counter at all," said Bradley Bennett, divisional manager at Plug-Ins Electronix. J.P. Nambiar, general manager for retail at Jumbo Electronics said: "We are the main distributor of Sony VAIO notebooks and are selling the complete range of new models. "Laptops have a very short product life cycle, usually about three months, so Gitex Shopper has become an important window to launch the new models."

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