Notebook Computer Sales Beat Desktops in 2008:Q3, And Will Increase By +15.2% in 2009
NEW YORK (AP) — Shipments of notebook computers edged past desktop sales in the third quarter for the first time, according to data from the research firm iSupply. Preliminary figures for the quarter show notebook PC shipments shot up 40% from the same period a year ago to 38.6 million. Meanwhile desktop shipments fell 1.3% to 38.5 million.
The numbers underscore a broader shift toward portable computing as more functions like e-mail and Web surfing migrate to mobile phones and the popularity of inexpensive "netbooks" used mainly for Internet access grows.
The research firm IDC also predicted this month that sales of laptops would fair better amid a deepening recession - portable PC shipments will grow by 15.2% in 2009, while expecting a 6.7% decline for desktops and servers using PC microprocessors.
6 Comments:
Although the unit shipments will rise, the total sales will most likely decline due to the lower average selling prices of netbooks versus traditional laptops. A large number of consumers will be 'trading down' to netbooks.
Well, the price difference between laptops and desktops has largely disappeared, and the performance differences have slimmed down somewhat.
The average laptop has a smaller HD and a smaller screen, but that's the chief difference. The CPU may be about 10-25% slower, but that's not enough to justify the difference in convenience, and the screen size and HD limit can be dealt with by suitable detachable peripherals for use at home.
Further, what is often happening is not a replacement of the home computer but an additional computer. The home machine becomes more of a base station and workhorse, with things like a Slingbox and a network drive and printer attached, allowing it to do full-scale server duties.
Smaller, faster and more mobile is the trend and will be.
You'll also see a trend toward applications moving from the desktops, laptops and netbooks to web servers.
While the article states that PC-processor based server sales will decline, those applications drifting from the clients to servers should mean non-PC processor server sales should be stable or grow.
Don't bury the desktop yet though - there are a lot of applications and usages for which desktops are superior.
As for notebooks, besides the slight processor speed differential, typically the HD speed of a laptop is 5400 RPM vs the average desktop's speed of 7200 RPM.
We're rapidily getting to the point where the distinctions between cell phone, Blackberry and net book are getting very much blurred.
"portable PC shipments will grow by 15.2% in 2009"...
Hmmm, global cooling in the purchasing sector maybe?
Sunrex pointed out that international notebook makers have become more conservative in placing orders, so its shipment forecast for 2008 has been lowered slightly
Maybe the government should do something to help bail out the desktop units. Surely, we cannot let our communities suffer job losses from this catastrophe!
Contact your representatives today!
I've had a desktop and a laptop for a few years. The laptop was quite valuable for school - papers, research, etc. But it now sits in the corner neglected. It's too bulky to be comfortable on my lap, and my iPhone can do many of the casual things the laptop would otherwise be used for - even Carpe Diem. I find my desktop to be more flexible, even though it IS stationary.
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