Worldwide personal computer shipments increased more than 20 percent in the first three months of this year from the same period a year ago, a sign the PC business is on firmer ground after one of its shakiest stretches ever.
Analysts at research firms IDC and Gartner Inc said on Wednesday that the quarterly increase was higher than expected, and was driven by spending by both consumers and businesses. That could indicate that many kinds of technology companies, not just ones that sell PCs, will report stronger-than-expected first-quarter results as Intel Corp did on Tuesday.
Consumers’ interest in low-cost laptops helped prop up the PC industry for the last three quarters. That remained true in the first quarter, a time when PC sales are typically slower. Consumers also started buying more “all-in-one” desktop computers that build everything into the monitor, IDC said.
In China, consumers flocked to deals offered around the Lunar New Year holidays, which helped push up PC shipments 45.4 percent in the country, Gartner said.
The analysts also said businesses in the US and Western Europe are starting to purchase new computers for the first time since the economic downturn.
Mikako Kitagawa, an analyst at Gartner, said businesses spent more freely as the overall economy improved. She said Windows 7, Microsoft Corp’s newest PC operating system, will push companies to replace computers faster in the second half of this year and the beginning of next year.
Gartner said PC shipments rose 27.4 percent. IDC estimated shipments grew 24.2 percent. The two groups calculate the figure using slightly different methods.
The quarter looked particularly strong compared with a year ago, when PC shipments sank about 7 percent. The holiday period of 2008 and the first half of last year marked the industry’s worst stretch in several years. However, then consumers’ interest in “netbooks” — tiny, inexpensive, low-powered laptops — and other cheap portable computers helped drive a turnaround, beginning with a tiny increase in shipments during the third quarter of last year.
Hewlett-Packard Co remained the top computer maker in the world, followed by Acer Inc (宏碁), Dell Inc and Lenovo Group Ltd (聯想). By IDC’s measure, Toshiba Corp was the No. 5 PC maker. Garter’s rankings showed Asustek Computer Inc (華碩) of Taiwan on par with Toshiba.
Acer’s shipments grew faster than HP’s or Dell’s in the quarter.
Analysts from both groups said HP and Dell have had a hard time matching Acer’s low prices.
In the US, HP and Dell remained the top two PC makers by a wide margin. However, their market shares slipped a few percentage points, while Acer and Toshiba gained.
Apple Inc is No. 5 in the US.
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