Digital Lifescapes

The leading vendors of personal computers would much rather put the trials and tribulations of last year behind them, but the industry analysts won't let them. Worldwide PC shipments totaled 82.2 million units in the fourth quarter of 2013 (4Q13), representing a year-on-year contraction of -5.6 percent, according to the latest market study by International Data Corporation (IDC). For the full year 2013, unit shipments declined -10.0 percent from 2012 -- that's a record drop reflecting the changes in mobility and personal computing affecting the mature PC market. While commercial purchases helped to prevent a larger decline, the consumer side remained weak. "The PC market again came in very close to expectations, but unfortunately failed to significantly change the trajectory of growth," said Loren Loverde, vice president at IDC . Total shipments have now declined for seven consecutive quarters, and even the 2013 holiday shopping season was unable to inspire a ...

Personal computer shipments across the globe totaled 81.6 million units in the third quarter of 2013 (3Q13). Compared with last year, the market contracted -7.6% -- slightly better than the projected decline of -9.5% for the quarter, according to the latest market study by International Data Corporation (IDC). While shipments remained weak during the early part of the quarter, the market was somewhat buoyed by business purchases of PCs, as well as channel intake of Windows 8.1-based systems during September. A slight uptick in business volume contributed to shipments. The top three vendors (Lenovo, HP, and Dell) -- which all have an important presence in the enterprise and public sectors -- each saw modest positive year-on-year growth during the quarter. Conversely, consumer sentiment for PC purchases remained tepid, as evidenced by the continued struggles of vendors such as Acer and ASUS. Despite some encouraging developments in the business space, emerging markets continued t...

Media tablets may have reached market saturation in several markets -- particularly those made by Apple. Worldwide tablet shipment growth has slowed in the second quarter of 2013 (2Q13), according to the latest market study by International Data Corporation (IDC). Worldwide tablet shipments finally experienced a sequential decline as total volumes fell -9.7 percent from 1Q13. However, the 45.1 million units shipped in the second quarter was up 59.6 percent from the same quarter in 2012, when tablet vendors shipped 28.3 million devices. Lacking a new product launch in March to help spur shipments, Apple's iPad saw a lower-than-predicted shipment total of 14.6 million units for the quarter -- that's down from 19.5 million in 1Q13. In years past, Apple has launched a new tablet heading into the second quarter, which resulted in strong quarter-over-quarter growth. Now, Apple is expected to launch new tablet products in the second half of the year, a move that better positions...