Distance learning sees increased demand for laptops

Abu Dhabi: Electronic stores in Abu Dhabi say purchases have gone up during past two weeks with parents buying laptops for the electronic items as their children get ready to start distance learning from home.

"There has been a notable increase in the last two weeks, with a lot of sales coming in for laptops and tablets. Many parents started visiting the store and buying the devices after the schools were shut," said a customer care representative at Mushrif Mall's Sharaf DG.

"In terms of stock, it depends on what they're looking for, in general we are well stocked, and if we don't have something in the store we can get it in 24 hours for them," the representative added, explaining that Lenovo devices were the only ones that had currently sold out.

Jumbo Electronics at the Galleriah Al Maryah Island said they too have seen sales going up as parents visited the store.

"There have been more sales because of the distance learning announcement. A lot of parents started coming to the shops to buy new laptops for their children, so from that perspective it has been good for the business," said a sales representative.

"We haven't run out of stock, we are well supplied so there shouldn't be any issue in meeting the high demand that's there."

E-City at Al Wahda Mall also confirmed the spike in laptop and tablet sales.

"There has been a big demand in the last couple of weeks, compared to the previous months, the day to day sales for laptops were higher and much more frequent as a result of parents visiting the shop," said a sales person who works at the store.

"It's definitely good for business considering what's currently happening. Despite the high sales, we didn't run out of any items and are still well stocked for any parents that want to come and buy something," the rep added.

Schools across the UAE will start implementing distance learning from Sunday, as students access a number of online tools and applications to carry out their studies from their homes.

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