PC shipments slow as tablets take hold
Lenovo passes Dell to become the world's number two PC maker; Apple enjoys "halo" effect. UPDATED with NZ Q2 figures.
IDC's third-quarter PC shipment survey preliminary results reveal the market was slower than expected.
Worldwide personal computer shipments increased by 3.6%,
The results are up slightly from the 2.7% growth experienced in 2Q11, and just below IDC's August projections for 4.5% growth in the quarter.
The market tracker pins the slow-down on two phenomena: fear of a double-dip recession, and buyers diverting money to the booming tablet market.
There were three big winners in the slowing market.
Lenovo (the Chinese company that bought IBM's PC division), passed Dell to claim the worldwide number two slot.
Taiwan's Asus was able to off-set declining netbook sales with a strong result in emerging markets.
And although it didn't make the top five, Apple enjoyed 20% growth for the quarter with a "halo effect" from the iPhone and iPad helping to drive sales of its MacBook Air and other models.
(Click to enlarge; figures in 000s.)
IDC has yet to release third-quarter PC shipment figures for New Zealand.
In the second quarter, the market tracker recorded 1.8 million PC shipments across Australasia - representing 6% sequential growth and 7% over the year-ago quarter.
But althought more PCs were shiped, margins were lower as manufacturers discounted to keep sales moving, IDC said.
IDC analyst Amy Cheah said New Zealand sales were more robust than expected, in part due to interest rates remaining low.
The Australasian second-quarter top 5:
Third quarter dip expected
Given the current challenging economic conditions, coupled with the seasonal slowdown in spending following the end of the financial year, IDC expects the market to drop by 6% to 1.7 million units in the third quarter That said, IDC expects the Australia-New Zealand market to grow 7% overall in 2011, to 6.8 million units.
NBR staff
Fri, 14 Oct 2011
Fri, 14 Oct 2011
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PC shipments slow as tablets take hold
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