Research firm IDC released its report for the first quarter of 2014, according to which the PC market declined by 4.4%, recording shipments of 73.4 million systems.
The performance, although negative, is considered encouraging since initial forecasts expected the decline to reach -5.3%. The end of support for the Windows XP operating system is said to have played a significant role in the relative improvement in the market, which led many users to purchase new systems.
In more detail, in the Europe, Middle East and Africa market, the market is reportedly stabilizing thanks to professional demand for new systems to replace systems with Windows XP. At the same time, the consumer market also seems to be stabilizing and showing signs of improvement.
The United States market continued to stabilize with shipments totaling 14.3 million systems, up 0.6% from the first quarter of 2013. Desktop systems grew 3.5%, while notebooks remained flat. The Japanese market showed solid growth, while most markets in the Asia/Pacific region declined.
Lenovo maintained its lead among manufacturers worldwide, shipping 12.962 million systems and holding a 17.7% market share. Compared to the same period last year, Lenovo grew by 10.5%.
Hewlett Packard remained in second place with an annual market share increase of 4.7%, its largest increase in the last two years. The company showed strong growth in the EMEA region (Europe, Middle East, Africa), while also performing positively in the United States and Canada. HP shipped 12.557 million systems and had a market share of 17.1%.
Dell achieved growth of 9.3%, its best performance since the fourth quarter of 2011, and its third consecutive quarter of growth. The US company shipped 9.856 million systems, with a market share of 13.4%.
Acer, which continues to stabilize, came in fourth place. The Taiwanese company saw a 20.2% year-on-year decline in shipments, which appears to be due to weak consumer demand, high competition, and a shift toward 2-in-1s and tablets. In the first quarter of 2013, it shipped 4.992 million systems and had a market share of 6.8%.
Asus rounded out the top five manufacturers with an annual decline of 8.1%. The company shipped 4.296 million systems and had a market share of 5.9%. The rest of the world's manufacturers shipped 28.757 million computers, representing 39.2% of the total market. These manufacturers' figures fell by 13.1%.
Source: naftemporiki.gr
