Lenovo led the PC market in Q1 2024 with a 24% market share, delivering strong growth of 8% and shipping 13.7 million notebooks and desktops. Second-placed HP posted a flat performance, shipping 12.0 million units. Dell secured third place but suffered a minor shipment decline of 2% year on year. Apple took fourth place in the vendor rankings with growth of 2.5%, boosted by the launch of new MacBook Air products late in the quarter. Acer rounded out the top five vendors with 3.7 million PCs shipped.

“To capitalize on the demand uptick, the PC industry will now deliver meaningful innovation through on-device AI capabilities in PCs, with 2024 set to be a bumper year for such devices,” said Ishan Dutt, Principal Analyst at Canalys. “A slew of announcements from both OEMs and chipset vendors at CES will set the stage for more products to be brought to market later in the year. We expect one in five PCs shipped this year to be AI-capable, incorporating a dedicated chipset or block, such as an NPU, to run on-device AI workloads. Adoption will ramp up quickly thereafter, especially in the commercial sector, where the benefits of on-device AI related to productivity, security and cost management will become a key consideration for businesses.”

By 2027, Canalys forecasts that over 170 million AI-capable PCs will be shipped, with nearly 60% being deployed in commercial settings.

With AI PCs poised to take center stage in 2024, Canalys has released a complimentary special report to help understand the impact they will have. “Now and Next for AI-capable PCs” provides a comprehensive look into the dawn of AI in personal computing, including definitions and market projections alongside a deep dive into current trends, future opportunities and potential challenges in the AI PC market.

Lenovo sealed the top spot in the PC market rankings for Q4 2023, shipping 16.1 million units and posting 3% annual growth. It was also the largest shipping vendor for the full year 2023, posting 59.1 million units. HP, securing the second position, recorded a 6% year-on-year growth in shipments in Q4. Its overall annual shipments for 2023 amounted to 52.9 million units, a marginal 4% decrease from 2022. Dell retained its third position in both the Q4 2023 and full-year 2023 rankings, shipping 9.9 million units and 40 million units, respectively. Apple secured the fourth position in Q4 2023 by shipping 6.6 million units globally, achieving 9% growth. The vendor maintained fourth spot in the full-year standings as well, experiencing a 14% decline from 2022 with total units reaching 23 million units. Acer secured the fifth position with a 12% year-over-year growth, shipping 4 million units in Q4 2023, but Asus occupied the fifth spot in the full-year rankings for 2023, totaling 16 million units and experiencing a 21% annual decline compared to 2022.

“Most of the issues that plagued the industry in the second half of last year have extended into the start of 2023,” said Ishan Dutt, Senior Analyst at Canalys. “Channel partners have indicated that their inventory levels have been reducing but remain high in absolute terms. 39% of partners surveyed by Canalys in January 2023 reported having more than five weeks of PC inventory, with 18% reporting nine weeks or more. Meanwhile, demand across all customer segments remains dampened, with more pressure arising from further interest rate increases in the US, Europe and other markets, where reducing inflation is a top priority. Consumers and businesses will remain cautious about outlays on new PCs in the short term, with significant market recovery only expected to kick in during the fourth quarter of 2023. The PC market has strong fundamentals to drive long-term growth, with shipment volumes higher than in the pre-pandemic era. A much larger installed base post-COVID-19, the transition to Windows 11, and both refresh and new demand from digital education will all be key drivers as the global economy enters a period of recovery in 2024 and beyond.”

Lenovo, with a market share of 24%, topped the market for shipments of desktops and notebooks but suffered a large annual decline of 30%, down 12.7 million units. HP claimed second place, undergoing a less dramatic drop of 24% to 12.0 million units of shipments. Third-placed Dell posted shipments of 9.5 million units, down 31% and falling below the 10.0-million-unit mark for the first time since Q1 2018. Apple faced the largest decline among the top five vendors, with total shipments of Macs dropping 46% to 4 million units. Asus secured the fifth position with 3.9 million units of shipments.

About PC Analysis

Canalys’ PC Analysis service provides quarterly updated shipment data to help with accurate market sizing, competitive analysis and identifying growth opportunities in the market. Canalys PC shipment data is granular, guided by a strict methodology, and is broken down by market, vendor and channel, as well as additional splits, such as GPU, CPU, storage and memory. In addition, Canalys also publishes quarterly forecasts to help better understand the future trajectory and changing landscape of the PC industry.

Worldwide tablet shipments grew following three consecutive quarters of decline, up a modest 1% year on year in Q4 2022. Apple held onto first place in the rankings, shipping 19 million units and commanding a whopping 46% market share worldwide as rollover demand and the launch of new M2 iPads drove success. Samsung came second with 7.6 million units, with shipments growing 10%, driving it to 18% market share. Third-placed Amazon shipped 3.5 million units after a 10% year-on-year drop, staving off a larger decline with steep discounting on its Fire tablets around Black Friday. Lenovo and Huawei finished fourth and fifth, with large declines of 51% and 36% respectively. Total shipments by other vendors grew 4%, highlighting the entrance of new vendors into the tablet market.

“Demand for tablets remained healthy in spite of worsening economic conditions,” said Himani Mukka, Analyst at Canalys. “Market leader Apple helped drive the overall growth with new premium product launches, showing that customers will respond positively to compelling innovation in the space. Significant discounting and promotions driven by vendors and retailers during the holiday season also helped spur demand as consumers looked to stretch their budgets. However, on the commercial front, both businesses and governments have adopted a more cautious approach to IT spending, putting some digital transformation plans that would include tablet procurement on hold.”

“Despite the decline from 2021, tablet shipment volumes in 2022 were well above pre-pandemic levels and opportunities for future growth remain intact,” added Mukka. “The need for educational digitalization remains high in developing markets, which often favor tablets over notebooks due to price and connectivity advantages. Vendors are making efforts to enter this segment and gain a first-mover advantage. Tablets also saw some renewed interest and innovation at CES 2023, with a focus on improvements to productivity and premium user experiences. On-the-go workers, prosumers, customer touchpoints and office conferencing hubs all represent commercial frontiers where tablets are likely to see traction.”

While Chromebooks suffered a sixth consecutive quarter of decline, the drop in Q4 2022 was softer than in the previous five quarters, with shipments down just 10% year on year. “Heavy retail discounting and a boost to school purchasing brought some reprieve to the Chromebook market,” said Ishan Dutt, Senior Analyst at Canalys. “But total shipments in 2022 were down nearly 50% against 2021, emphasizing the extent to which a ‘return to normal’ has affected the segment’s fortunes. With expansion into commercial settings remaining a challenge and consumer spending set to be constrained, Chromebook vendors are awaiting the education refresh cycle in key markets, such as in the US, Japan and Europe, to help drive significant volumes again. With the current pressure on public sector budgets, Canalys expects this year to bring only pockets of opportunity, as short-term inventory clearance remains a focus for vendors and the channel ahead of the back-to-school season. Significant growth is only likely to arise in 2024 as devices bought during the pandemic peak reach the end of their lifespans. There will also be an opportunity to deliver higher-value products as students and teachers have developed stronger expectations for devices that are being used on such a frequent basis. With digital curriculums firmly embedded in education systems, long-term demand for Chromebooks is set to be consistent and cyclical.”

HP regained the top spot in the Chromebook rankings and was the only vendor to grow in Q4 2022, with shipments up 117% year on year to just over a million units. Acer fell back to second place, posting 710,000 shipments in the quarter after a decline of 22%. The rest of the top five remained unchanged from Q3 2022, with Lenovo in third place with 550,000 units shipped, down 27%. Dell and Asus were placed fourth and fifth, posting declines of 25% and 37%, respectively.

In the total PC market (desktops, notebooks and tablets) in Q4 2022, Apple took first place with 25.5 million units shipped, growing 5% year-on-year and expanding its market share to 24%. Lenovo finished second, ceding first place to Apple from the same period last year, with 17.9 million devices shipped and a 32% annual decline. HP and Dell remained in third and fourth place, with 13.2 million and 10.9 million units shipped respectively. Samsung, backed by tablet growth, rounded out the top five with 6% year-on-year growth and 8.3 million devices shipped.

Appendix: Shipment (sell-in) estimates for worldwide PC (including tablet) market, tablet market and Chromebook market, Q4 2022 and full-year 2022  

]]> https://itseller.us/2023/02/tablet-shipments-grew-in-q4-2022-despite-economic-challenges/feed/ 0 2754 https://itseller.us/2023/01/global-pc-shipments-declined-by-16-to-285-million-in-2022/ https://itseller.us/2023/01/global-pc-shipments-declined-by-16-to-285-million-in-2022/#respond Tue, 17 Jan 2023 13:54:34 +0000 https://itseller.us/?p=2652 The global PC market ended 2022 on a low note, with total shipments of desktops and notebooks down by 29% to 65.4 million units in Q4. This represents a fourth consecutive quarter of decline as holiday season spending was muted amid a worsening economic environment. This pegged total shipments for full-year 2022 at 285.1 million units, a 16% drop from the highs of 2021 when all end-user segments saw peak demand. Nevertheless, shipment volumes remain favorable compared to pre-pandemic, with total 2022 shipments 7% higher than in 2019. Notebooks underwent a larger decline, down by 30% to 51.4 million units in Q4 2022 and 19% to 223.8 million units for the full year. Desktops fared slightly better, undergoing a decline of 24% to 14.1 million units in Q4 and a drop of 7% to 61.3 million units across 2022.

“As expected, the global PC market faced further headwinds in Q4 to round out what has been a difficult 2022,” said Ishan Dutt, Senior Analyst, Canalys. “The decline is especially stark as the corresponding period in 2021 brought about record shipments of notebooks and desktops. Vendors and retailers aimed to stimulate consumer spending with heavy discounting, but despite pockets of success, this was not enough to drive significant new sell-in. With rising costs for energy and basic goods in key markets like the US and Europe, expenditure on big-ticket items like PCs has taken a back seat as consumers are prepared to delay refreshes. Meanwhile, on the commercial front, both public and private sector budgets faced tightening amid rising interest rates, slowdowns in hiring and expectations of a recession early next year. A December 2022 poll of around 250 channel partners showed that 60% expect their PC business revenue to remain flat or decline in 2023. This challenging environment for the PC industry is anticipated to last until the second half of next year.”

“Despite the short-term difficulty, the long-term outlook for PCs remains positive,” added Dutt. “Shipments in 2022 were down by 16%, and we expect a further contraction in 2023, but in both years, total volumes will remain higher than in the pre-pandemic era of 2019. Once businesses and consumers ride out the storm, we expect delayed purchases to begin boosting the market in late 2023, with momentum picking up in 2024. This will be bolstered by an education demand bump in major markets as devices deployed during the pandemic peak reach the end of their life cycle. And even during the downturn, there will be areas that can deliver success for the industry, such as gaming, connected PCs and hybrid work, all of which were highlighted by announcements at CES 2023.”

Lenovo secured the top spot in the PC market in Q4 2022, with shipments totaling 15.5 million units, representing a 29% year-on-year decline. It was also the largest shipping vendor for the full-year 2022, posting 68.1 million units as it underwent a 17% decline compared to 2021. HP ranked second, also seeing shipments decline by 29% in Q4 to a total of 13.2 million units. For the full-year 2022, it saw shipments fall by 25% to 55.2 million units. Third-placed Dell suffered the largest decline among the top vendors in Q4, with shipments down by 37% to 10.8 million units. However, its strength in commercial earlier in 2022 meant its total shipments were down by 16% to 49.7 million units. Apple was placed fourth in both the Q4 and full-year rankings, ending 2022 with 27.2 million Macs shipped for a 6% decline, while Asus rounded out the top five with a modest decline of 4% compared to its 2021 shipments.

The two-year compound annual growth rate of 13% from 2019 emphasizes how dramatically the importance of PCs has grown since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Notebooks and mobile workstations continued to lead the charge, with shipments of these devices growing 16% in 2021 to reach 275 million units. Desktop and desktop workstation shipments increased 7% in 2021 to reach 66 million units.

“2021 was a watershed year in the history of the PC market, with the PC’s place at the center of work, learning and leisure truly cemented,” said Ishan Dutt, Senior Analyst at Canalys. “For the market to post double-digit growth over an impressive 2020, despite the constant cloud of supply constraints, speaks volumes about how strong PC demand has been over the last 12 months. Taking a long-term view, the most important developments in 2021 were the large increases in PC penetration and usage rates. PCs are now in the hands of both young students and older family members, while ownership of two or more PCs per person has become more common in developed markets. Since the onset of the pandemic, a larger than normal proportion of PCs shipped have been new additions to the installed base rather than replacement devices, especially in areas such as education and remote work. This has set the stage for continued success for the PC industry as there is no turning back from how embedded they are in our day-to-day lives.”

Lenovo took first place in the PC market in Q4 with total shipments of 21.7 million units, an annual decline of 6.5%. It was also the biggest-shipping vendor for full-year 2021, hitting a record 82.1 million units, a 13.1% increase on 2020. HP ranked second, with Q4 shipments of 18.7 million units helping it reach 74.1 million units in 2021, growth of 9.5% over 2020. Third-placed Dell posted stellar growth of 8.9% in Q4 to reach 17.2 million units and increased its market share by over 1%. Dell ended 2021 with total shipments of 59.3 million units for the year. Apple and Acer rounded out the top five for both Q4 and the full year, posting shipments of 29.0 million and 24.4 million units in 2021, respectively.

“While 2021 was the year of digital transformation, 2022 will be the year of digital acceleration,” said Canalys Principal Analyst Rushabh Doshi. “Demand for technology has boomed in the past two years, the effects of which continue to disrupt the supply chain, affecting not just availability of PCs, but also smartphones, automobiles and servers. As PC vendors navigate an ever more complicated situation, consumer spending patterns are shifting. We will see revenue growth in the industry from spending on premium PCs, monitors, accessories and other technology products that enable us to work from anywhere, collaborate around the world and remain ultra-productive. The importance of faster, better, more resilient and more secure PCs has never been greater, and the industry is willing to innovate and push the boundaries to keep this momentum going.”

From a market standpoint, the US continued to see shipments fall for a second consecutive quarter, primarily due to a strong fourth quarter for Chromebooks in 2020. EMEA and Asia Pacific (excluding Japan) were bright spots, as shipments grew by double digits over last year.

According to Canalys data, ongoing strong demand in the holiday season led to a third consecutive quarter of sequential growth, with shipments in Q4 up 13% sequentially over what was a stellar performance in Q3. On the back of this remarkable recovery after a supply-constrained Q1, total PC shipments in 2020 grew 11% to reach 297.0 million units. This represents the highest full-year growth since 2010 and the highest shipment volume since 2014.

“Worldwide PC market growth in 2020 was singlehandedly driven by notebooks and mobile workstations. Shipments of these devices increased 25% from 2019 to reach 235.1 million units. Conversely, desktop and desktop workstation shipments fell 22% from last year to reach 61.9 million units in 2020,” the firm reported.

According to Canalys data, Lenovo held first place in the PC market in Q4 with record shipments of 23.1 million units and year-on-year growth of 29%. This meant it also took first place for the whole year, with total shipments of 72.6 million units and a market share of 24.5%. HP took second place in the annual rankings, with Q4 shipments of 19.1 million units, bringing its 2020 total to 67.6 million units, up 7% over its 2019 number. Third-placed Dell ended 2020 with a bang, with Q4 shipments up 27% to break the 15-million mark for the first time in its history, bringing its 2020 total to 50.3 million units. Apple and Acer took fourth and fifth place, shipping 22.6 and 20.0 million devices, respectively. In total, the top five vendors accounted for 78.5% of PC shipments in 2020.

“The industry deserves all the success that has come its way,” said Rushabh Doshi, Canalys Research Director. “We would be in a very different position had it not been for the commitment of the PC industry, including the vendors, the supply chain and the distribution channel, to make sure that every bit of market demand was met. The digital transformation the world has undertaken over the past year is unparalleled, and PCs were at the heart of this change. As the world readies itself to get vaccinated and overcome the COVID-19 virus, it is important to remember that PCs have played a vital role at every stage of this fight, from understanding the virus and synthesizing the vaccine, to social monitoring and vaccine roll-out. It is going to be extremely difficult to write off the PC as some of us did a few years ago. PCs are here to stay.”

“2021 is shaping up to be an even more exciting year for PCs, with vendors and ecosystem players refusing to rest on their laurels as they compete for the new demand opportunities that have emerged in,” said Ishan Dutt, Analyst at Canalys. “Innovations in chipsets, operating systems, connectivity and form factors will take center stage as the PC industry caters to a broader range of customers that bring with them new behaviors and use cases. From Apple and Microsoft’s new custom silicon to the exciting platform updates to Chrome and Windows, the PC industry is moving at breakneck speed to cater to its newfound user base. While supply shortages continue to dampen the market in the short term, Canalys believes most wrinkles will be ironed out by the second half of 2021.”

*Note: Tablets (slates and detachable) are not addressed in this press release. Chromebooks are included as a subset of notebooks.