US-based online PC retailer Newegg.com has quietly launched its services in India which can be accessed via this link. Its services seem to have launched in Ireland, Netherlands, New Zealand, Poland and Singapore as well. The company had previously announced its intentions to launch in the aforementioned countries in June this year.

The website currently lists computer cases, CPUs, Motherboards, Memory and GPUs in the PC Components category, internal and external HDDs as well as SSDs and DVD/Blu ray burners in the Storage category and fans and PC cooling, audio equipment, input devices and monitors in the Peripherals category. The company also lists various phone accessories and all sorts of cables in separate categories.

The website also has an Apple category but it isn’t yet populated with any Apple devices yet. Additionally, the website does not seem to list any power supply units as yet.

The company has not yet set up a base in India and hence all its products are shipped from the US. Consequently, products cost pretty much the same as they usually cost in India after adding import duties and taxes.

On an average the prices on Newegg seem to be the same as that on Flipkart or Amazon. Certain hardware such as processors are more expensive on Newegg, while GPUs in particular were a tad cheaper. Additionally, GPUs purchased from Newegg still have valid coupons for games, something not common in India.

Shipping charges and warranty issues: Unfortunately though, Newegg charges the customer for shipping, and the charges are pretty high. To ship an AMD FX-4300 to India for example, a customer will have to pay Rs. 1150 or Rs. 1275 depending on if it delivers within 4-6 days or 2-4 days respectively. In contrast, competing brand Flipkart offers free shipping while most Amazon and Snapdeal products ship for a relatively modest Rs 0-300. Additionally, a customer might face warranty issues with a product purchased from Newegg as local service centres might not be willing to repair imported products, a problem especially common among laptops.

Home equipment: Along with PC components, Newegg is also selling home equipment on the website. The website lists electrical equipment, hand and power tools, kitchen appliances and security and surveillance equipment under the category Home and Living.

Competition: E-commerce majors Flipkart, Amazon.in and Snapdeal already have an established customer base and logistics network. It will be interesting to see if Newegg manages to make any headway in the Indian market. The high shipping charges will no doubt affect sales.