Deverill plays its Acer card

Deverill plays its Acer card

Reseller Deverill has completed an agreement with notebook vendor Acer, and claimed this will boost its price competitiveness in future hardware deals.

The Hewlett-Packard/Compaq VAR will become an Acer Gold partner, as the notebook vendor continues to grow its UK channel. Acer announced last month that it is looking for new resellers to offer its new tablet PC with full support.

The price of Acer products was a major consideration when the reseller decided to take on the PC vendor's range, according to Richard Ashmore, managing director of Deverill.

"It's very competitive out there at the moment," he said. "This deal makes sense and adds another string to our bow. This new range gives us greater potential in markets where price is everything, such as the education sector."

Paul Cook, UK sales director at Acer, said the vendor is able to keep its costs down because of its location. "If you are manufacturing PCs you don't want to build in Scotland or the US, but in the Far East, because it is more economical," he said.

Cook added that Deverill's record of providing products and services meant it was able to join the vendor's channel at the highest accreditation level.

Andy Brown, analyst at IDC, said Acer was making good progress in Germany and the UK, and it is more than just good pricing that gives the vendor an advantage.

"People see Hewlett-Packard (HP) as the company with a strong channel, but Acer has done a lot of ground work over the last few years," he said.

"Unlike other vendors Acer has gone to the channel and said 'We want to work with you,' instead of making VARs feel like they are in a selection process."

Brown said he expects more Compaq resellers to look for other vendor partners as its acquisition by HP causes uncertainty. "They will stay with HP because it is so big you have to work with it, but some resellers will also look for other vendor partners," he said.