Logitech moves away from computer mouse, looks to wireless

[zMeul]

Source: Reuters

 

FRANKFURT, April 23 (Reuters) - Gadget maker Logitech International SA said on Thursday quarterly operating profit fell 34 percent on steep currency declines and shrinking demand for accessories like the computer mouse on which it built its global brand name.

Nonetheless, strong demand for newer music and video accessories helped profits to come in higher than all analyst forecasts.

Logitech has refocused on new lines like wireless music speakers, videoconferencing and video game controllers, offsetting a decline in personal computers and demand for its mice and keyboards it has made since the dawn of the PC age.

Towards that end, Logitech said it will exit a low-margin business that mainly makes computer mice for PC makers to sell as their own. Sales there fell 26 percent in the latest quarter.

It reported operating profit of $14.5 million for the quarter ended March 31, compared to $21.8 million a year ago, due to pockets of sales strength, lower costs and fewer restructuring charges. Net sales in the March quarter fell 4.7 percent to $467.2 million, at the high of estimates.

Logitech has at best managed slow sales growth for six of the past seven years. However, underlying demand for new products and action to cut costs and raise prices are positioning it for sustained growth in coming years, it said.

Shares of the Lausanne-based company traded up 2.2 percent at midday on the Zurich stock exchange, following the report.

 

PRICE HIKES PLANNED

Once Logitech exits the declining computer mouse manufacturing business, underlying sales results from are set to show sustained sales growth in constant currency terms, Chief Executive Bracken Darrell said in an interview.

"This (retail business) is going to be the bulk of our business going forward," Darrell said. "What we are announcing today is the simplifying of our story."

Excluding currency swings, sales nudged up 1 percent. Logitech's retail business, which generates 90 percent of sales, grew 7 percent in constant currency. Importantly, newer growth categories on which it is betting its future business, grew 45 percent and now make up nearly one-third of its retail business.

Darrell, who has moved Logitech into new product lines while cutting costs in older product areas, said Logitech was prepared to increase prices to offset currency declines.

"We are raising prices around the world," Darrell told Reuters, referring to markets outside the United States. The price increases will take effect in this quarter," he said.

The CEO said he believes the company commands pricing power in many of its accessory lines including what is now its best-selling product line -- wireless Bluetooth speakers. It plans to raise prices around 11 to 13 percent in Europe, for example.

More than half of Logitech's costs and expenses are in U.S. dollars and roughly 10 percent are in Swiss francs while it relies on suppliers in Asia, where currencies have been stable, to source most of its hardware. (1 Swiss franc = $1.0314) (Reporting by Ismail Shakil and Narottam Medhora in Bengaluru; Editing by Keith Weir)

[ShadowCaptain]

Logitech should focus on high end peripherals, their gaming products have always been great as have their more professional mice - they should stop wasting money on $10 mice and keyboards 

 

in fact almost every Logitech product I have owned I have been happy with (that list is over 30 products long now)

 

EDIT: also OMRON switches are made by OMRON not logitech so its hardly their fault - surprising too, they are known to make amazing high quality switches

[zMeul]

every Logitech product I have owned I have been happy with (that list is over 30 products long now)

I'm at the exact opposite end, I'm tired of their overpriced peripherals especially when 5 of them all OMRON micro-switches die at aprox same time on your mouse

learned my lesson, if it dies so soon anyways, what's the point of paying premium?!

[ShadowCaptain]

I'm at the exact opposite end, I'm tired of their overpriced peripherals especially when 5 of them all OMRON micro-switches die at aprox same time on your mouse

learned my lesson, if it dies so soon anyways, what's the point of paying premium?!

 

 

Never had a peripheral fail on me in my whole life, heck my G15 v2 (bought on release day) and my G500 (also old) are still used for 9 hours a day in my office job and have never suffered a fault

 

as far as their support goes, always found it great, my mx nano, i lost the nano receiver and my f710 i lost the battery door - one email later and they posted me out replacement parts for free, and neither had any warranty left

[SpagettiNinja]

Never had a peripheral fail on me in my whole life, heck my G15 v2 (bought on release day) and my G500 (also old) are still used for 9 hours a day in my office job and have never suffered a fault

 

as far as their support goes, always found it great, my mx nano, i lost the nano receiver and my f710 i lost the battery door - one email later and they posted me out replacement parts for free, and neither had any warranty left

As he says. I may not have owned a whole lot of Logitech products, but those that my parents have had and those that i have are completely fine even after years of use, well past the warranty. Also, as he says, Logitech support is superior. If there ever should be something with your product, they will likely send a replacement.

[zMeul]

Logitech support is superior. If there ever should be something with your product, they will likely send a replacement.

that's highly irrelevant when you live in Europe and the nearest Logitech authorised RMA is a few countries over - the shipment tax would make this endeavor a waste since I can use that $ to buy a new mouse

[SpagettiNinja]

that's highly irrelevant when you live in Europe and the nearest Logitech authorised RMA is a few countries over - the shipment tax would make this endeavor a waste since I can use that $ to buy a new mouse

Is shipping that expensive? Pretty sure i didnt even have to pay shipping for my RMA.

[zMeul]

oh yeah, for international shipping it's a mess

[kuddlesworth9419]

Isn't the problem that Logitech mice are just too good. They last a long time and there is no reason to get rid of one once you have one so it's likely their sales have gone down. I own a G502 and I doubt I will ever get rid of this one until it breaks.

[ShadowCaptain]

that's highly irrelevant when you live in Europe and the nearest Logitech authorised RMA is a few countries over - the shipment tax would make this endeavor a waste since I can use that $ to buy a new mouse

cant you just but it from a local EU shop and take it back there? ive never had to pay for shipping returns

 

Isn't the problem that Logitech mice are just too good. They last a long time and there is no reason to get rid of one once you have one so it's likely their sales have gone down. I own a G502 and I doubt I will ever get rid of this one until it breaks.

 

yeah if it lasts like my previous mice have I will be super happy

[zMeul]

cant you just but it from a local EU shop and take it back there? ive never had to pay for shipping returns

most of shops do not offer the full warranty, they're like giving you 1y for a 3y product, rest to be covered by the manufacturer ...  :wacko:

[ltguy]

well I wasn't too enthused to buy new Logitech peripherals when all they did was reskin them. add a "s" to the name and raise the price 10-20 bucks. The Logitech g710 was a weird color scheme that didn't match their other peripherals and only available in one key switch and backlight. Also their 910 keyboard is pretty  polarizing not to mention quite expensive, keycaps are also strange.

 

Huge fan of the g500 mouse but not much to write home about since then.

[ShadowCaptain]

most of shops do not offer the full warranty, they're like giving you 1y for a 3y product, rest to be covered by the manufacturer ...  :wacko:

 

That is how manufacturers warranty works, same here in the UK, 12 months in the store, but if the manufacturer offers longer then its between you and them

 

Consider yourself lucky, in the US they dont get a return to store warranty at all most of the time

[looney]

looks like I'll have to buy 5 G502's to keep in storage as spares....

[zMeul]

That is how manufacturers warranty works, same here in the UK, 12 months in the store, but if the manufacturer offers longer then its between you and them

 

Consider yourself lucky, in the US they dont get a return to store warranty at all most of the time

depends who are you dealing with; here, most manufactures won't even consider shipping their product to them and force you to solve any warranty problems with the place of purchase

and this is where is gets all kinds of effed up ... with my time in tech support I didn't had any issues with RMAing broken stuff directly to the importer but, as an end-user is a nightmare

most shops solve their warranties in-house because they don't even purchase the products with a manufacturer's warranty - yes, you heard it right .. they do this to lower the purchase price to undercut the market; you won't even know this until you have to do a RMA

 

most of big companies don't even have official regional support here; I was quite lucky to deal with D-Link with a "wobbly" router via their local business centre - in the end, they sent me a new product revision for free

GigaByte for example, they had local offices here, full with tech-support and even had official forums .. ~1y later all closed

[Elapo]

Guess I'll get myself a spare G600 then.

[ShadowCaptain]

depends who are you dealing with; here, most manufactures won't even consider shipping their product to them and force you to solve any warranty problems with the place of purchase

 

I think you are mostly the exception to the rule, most US and European retailers will not operate that way, I worked in a large UK electronics retailer for many years and still know people there (and in different retail stores too including knowing some regional mangers etc) 

 

Sure maybe in Romania companies might operate that way, but that doesn't sound like common practice for most other geographical locations 

[Sidiox]

I'm so sad right now

[Derangel]

well I wasn't too enthused to buy new Logitech peripherals when all they did was reskin them. add a "s" to the name and raise the price 10-20 bucks. The Logitech g710 was a weird color scheme that didn't match their other peripherals and only available in one key switch and backlight. Also their 910 keyboard is pretty polarizing not to mention quite expensive, keycaps are also strange.

Huge fan of the g500 mouse but not much to write home about since then.

The G910 is a great keyboard. The keycaps are nowhere near as strange and hard to get used to as has been made out. I got used to the keys and layout of the 910 faster than I have any other keyboard I've owned. The switches feel good too.

[zMeul]

I think you are mostly the exception to the rule, most US and European retailers will not operate that way, I worked in a large UK electronics retailer for many years and still know people there (and in different retail stores too including knowing some regional mangers etc) 

 

Sure maybe in Romania companies might operate that way, but that doesn't sound like common practice for most other geographical locations 

had a broken 280X from GigaByte, RMAed it to get a new one but having problems too

so, I contacted GigaByte to ask them what I can do in this case and maybe deal directly with them .. they refused and pointed me to deal with the place of purchase

[ShadowCaptain]

had a broken 280X from GigaByte, RMAed it to get a new one but having problems too

so, I contacted GigaByte to ask them what I can do in this case and maybe deal directly with them .. they refused and pointed me to deal with the place of purchase

 

Maybe their warranty does not cover your country etc its not always that straight forward

[GoodBytes]

that's highly irrelevant when you live in Europe and the nearest Logitech authorised RMA is a few countries over - the shipment tax would make this endeavor a waste since I can use that $ to buy a new mouse

I have never had to send anything back to Logitech to warranty replacement.

They ask some numbers under the mouse, at worst proof of purchased e-mail to them, then ship you a new one. Yes, I said new. retail box and all. No invoice? No problem, only now they ask you to ship either the wireless receiver or put the end of the faulty Logitech USB cord, put that in a envelop and send that as proof. Never had to do that, as I have all my invoices.

[TroubleKlef]

Would love for Logitech to make a proper wireless gaming mouse that didn't look so "gamerish". A G602 but with Performance MX looks.

[woll3]

They are pulling out of the OEM rebranding business, nothing else, normal retail goes on as usual.

 

Or easier to understand, nothing is changing for us.

[GoodBytes]

They are pulling out of the OEM rebranding business, nothing else, normal retail goes on as usual.

 

Or easier to understand, nothing is changing for us.

They'll definitely keep making high end keyboard and mouse. The problem that Logitech faces is that:

-> Desktop sales are all time low, so people buying peripherals for them, are less then before.

-> People that do have desktop computers, they are mostly OEMs (pre-builds). And most of their users don't care in getting anything better than their 8$ combo keyboard and mouse.

Right now, the only thing that sales are:

-> Gamer anything.

-> Professionals (but that is slim compared to gamer, hence why Logitech (and they are about alone on it), have 1 mouse. The MX series).