The International Data Corporation has reported the first contraction in the worldwide PC market since the end of the recent recession. It says year-on-year PC shipments dropped 3.2% in the first quarter of 2011. A cautious business mentality and waning consumer enthusiasm combined with an increase in fuel and commodity prices are being blamed.
Jay Chou, senior research analyst with IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly PC Tracker, said “While the consequences of events in the Middle East and Japan remain unclear, these will surely be factors that will influence short term market performance for 2011. Long-term success will depend on hardware manufacturers being able to articulate a message that is beyond simple hardware specifications. ‘Good-enough computing’ has become a firm reality, exemplified first by Mini Notebooks and now Media Tablets. Macroeconomic forces can explain some of the ebb and flow of the PC business, but the real question PC vendors have to think hard about is how to enable a compelling user experience that can justify spending on the added horsepower.”
The company noted that blaming the drop in sales solely on the growth of media tablets was inappropriate, with extended PC lifetimes and the lack of compelling new PC experiences also affecting the figures.
Worldwide PC shipments, Q1 2011 (Unit shipments are measured in thousands)
|
Rank
|
Company
|
Q1 2011 shipments
|
Market share
|
Q1 2010 shipments
|
Market share
|
Year-on-year growth
|
|
1
|
HP
|
15,191
|
18.9%
|
15,624
|
18.8%
|
-2.8%
|
|
2
|
Dell
|
10,284
|
12.8%
|
10,469
|
12.6%
|
-1.8%
|
|
3
|
Acer
|
9,039
|
11.2%
|
10,733
|
12.9%
|
-15.8%
|
|
4
|
Lenovo
|
8,172
|
10.1%
|
7,028
|
8.4%
|
16.3%
|
|
5
|
Toshiba
|
4,809
|
6.0%
|
4,634
|
5.6%
|
3.8%
|
|
|
Others
|
33,062
|
41.0%
|
34,712
|
41.7%
|
-4.8%
|
|
|
All brands
|
80,557
|
100.0%
|
83,200
|
100.0%
|
-3.2%
|
Source: IDC Worldwide Quarterly PC Tracker, April 2011 (some estimates were prior to financial earnings reports). PC shipments include netbooks but not tablets.