• About
  • Subscribe
  • Contact
Friday, January 22, 2021
    Login
  • Management Leadership
    • Growth Strategies
    • Finance
    • Operations
    • Sales and Marketing
    • Careers
  • Technology
    • Infrastructure and Platforms
    • Business Applications and Databases
    • Big Data, Analytics and Intelligence
    • Security
  • Industry Verticals
    • Finance and Insurance
    • Manufacturing
    • Logistics and Transportation
    • Retail and Wholesale
    • Hospitality and Tourism
    • Government and Public Services
    • Utilities
    • Media and Telecommunications
  • Videos
  • Resources
  • Virtual Events
  • Events
No Result
View All Result
  • Management Leadership
    • Growth Strategies
    • Finance
    • Operations
    • Sales and Marketing
    • Careers
  • Technology
    • Infrastructure and Platforms
    • Business Applications and Databases
    • Big Data, Analytics and Intelligence
    • Security
  • Industry Verticals
    • Finance and Insurance
    • Manufacturing
    • Logistics and Transportation
    • Retail and Wholesale
    • Hospitality and Tourism
    • Government and Public Services
    • Utilities
    • Media and Telecommunications
  • Videos
  • Resources
  • Virtual Events
  • Events
No Result
View All Result
No Result
View All Result

Q4 2020 global PC shipments grew – so what?

FutureCIO Editors by FutureCIO Editors
January 13, 2021
Photo by Ivan Samkov from Pexels

Photo by Ivan Samkov from Pexels

Both IDC and Gartner released positive reports about PC shipments for the fourth quarter of 2020. In the Asia-Pacific region, IDC noted that purchases were skewed towards laptops (71%) and monitors (60%) as opposed to desktops (49%). Tablets (39%) were mainly bought for entertainment.

Source: Asia/Pacific consumer devices spending behaviour and trends 2020, IDC

Year in review

IDC reported that the fourth quarter of 2020 (4Q20) saw global shipments up 26.1% year-over-year to 91.6 million units. On an annual basis, this is a 13.1% growth compared to 2019.

Gartner counted 79.4 units shipped in 4Q20, 10.7% better than the same quarter in 2019. It said in total 279 million units were shipped in 2020, up 4.8% from 2019 and the highest growth in 10 years.

IDC also acknowledged the 10-year gap from the last peak in PC shipments.

Gartner’s Mikako Kitagawa said the growth in 2020 was strongest in markets where governments maintained “stay-at-home orders as the COVID-19 pandemic persists.”

She added that “prior to 2020, consumers had been shifting to a phone-first focus, yet the pandemic reversed this trend. PCs have resurfaced as an essential device as consumers, including younger children, are relying on them to for work, school, socializing and be entertained from their homes.”

What to expect in 2021

IDC analyst Ryan Reith, program vice president with IDC's Worldwide Mobile Device Trackers, is optimistic that moving into 2021, demand will continue and that a surge has a way to go.

"In retrospect, the pandemic not only fuelled PC market demand but also created opportunities that resulted in a market expansion," he continued.

Kitagawa agrees but cautions that it remains to be seen if it will sustain in the post-pandemic era as it will depend on the permanency of the changes driving demand.

“For instance, online education may continue even after schools open, consumers may still buy groceries online, and some businesses may continue full- or part-time remote work. If these scenarios persist, then PCs will return to consumers’ daily lives as an essential device,” she added.

So what?

Canalys’ research director Rushabh Doshi warns not to downplay the role of the PC industry. It deserves all the success that has come its way, he added.

“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,” he concluded.

At the end of the day, the COVID-19 pandemic spelt the revival of the PC market as it forced companies and consumers to upgrade their computers, smartphones and tablets notwithstanding, in order to continue working remotely. Would the end of the pandemic, when it eventually comes, put a hold to this renewed interest in PCs? Probably not!

Related:  Agility, speed drive public cloud spending in APAC
Tags: CanalysCOVID-19GartnerIDCpc shipment
FutureCIO Editors

FutureCIO Editors

No Result
View All Result

Recent Posts

  • Singapore MAS ups ante against cyber risk
  • Cloud-based email and web security more popular in APAC
  • Chief digital officer to assume data officer role by 2023
  • PodChats for FutureCIO: Why build when you can buy?
  • Over 60% of GC companies purposely at risk of technology failures

Live Poll - June 2020

In the event of a ransomware attack, should the CEO:
Vote

Categories

  • Big Data, Analytics & Intelligence
  • Business Applications & Databases
  • Business-IT Alignment
  • Careers
  • Case Studies
  • Cloud, Virtualization, Operating Environments and Middleware
  • Computer, Storage, Networks, Connectivity
  • Corporate Social Responsibility
  • Customer Experience / Engagement
  • Education
  • Finance
  • Finance & Insurance
  • General
  • Governance, Risk and Compliance
  • Government and Public Services
  • Growth Strategies
  • Hospitality & Tourism
  • HR, education and Training
  • Industry Verticals
  • Infrastructure & Platforms
  • Latest Stories
  • Logistics & Transportation
  • Management Leadership
  • Manufacturing
  • Media and Telecommunications
  • News Stories
  • Operations
  • Opinion
  • Opinions
  • Retail & Wholesale
  • Sales & Marketing
  • Security
  • Tactics and Strategies
  • Technology
  • Utilities
  • Videos
  • White Papers

Strategic Insights for Chief Information Officers

FutureCIO is about enabling the CIO, his team, the leadership and the enterprise through shared expertise, know-how and experience - through a community of shared interests and goals. It is also about discovering unknown best practices that will help realize new business models.

Quick Links

  • Videos
  • Resources
  • Subscribe
  • Contact

Cxociety Media Brands

  • FutureIoT
  • FutureCFO
  • FutureCIO

Categories

  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Cookie Policy

Copyright © 2019 Cxociety Pte Ltd | Designed by Pixl

No Result
View All Result
  • Management Leadership
    • Growth Strategies
    • Finance
    • Operations
    • Sales and Marketing
    • Careers
  • Technology
    • Infrastructure and Platforms
    • Business Applications and Databases
    • Big Data, Analytics and Intelligence
    • Security
  • Industry Verticals
    • Finance and Insurance
    • Manufacturing
    • Logistics and Transportation
    • Retail and Wholesale
    • Hospitality and Tourism
    • Government and Public Services
    • Utilities
    • Media and Telecommunications
  • Videos
  • Resources
  • Virtual Events
  • Events
Login

Copyright © 2019 Cxociety Pte Ltd | Designed by Pixl

Login to your account below

or

Not a member yet? Register here

Forgotten Password?

Fill the forms bellow to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In