The worldwide PC market has kicked off 2024 on a positive note, with total shipments of desktops and notebooks witnessing a 3.2 percent year-on-year growth to reach 57.2 million units in Q1, according to Canalys.
Notebook shipments, including mobile workstations, saw a 4.2 percent increase, amounting to 45.1 million units. Meanwhile, desktop shipments, including desktop workstations, remained relatively stable, experiencing a slight decrease of 0.4 percent to 12.1 million units.
This growth, albeit modest, underscores the ongoing recovery in PC demand across all segments. The market is poised for acceleration throughout the year, propelled by the momentum of Windows 11 refresh and the advent of AI PCs, which is expected to take centre stage at Computex in Taipei in June.
“The growth in the first quarter of 2024 bodes well for a robust PC market throughout the year. Despite some final stages of inventory corrections and limiting macroeconomic conditions in certain markets, the strength of the refresh opportunity, particularly from businesses, is beginning to surface,” said Ishan Dutt, Principal Analyst of Canalys.
“The market is set to go from strength to strength in the coming quarters as customers prioritise upgrades in preparation for a large-scale transition to Windows 11. The current PC installed base is larger and older than ever, presenting a huge opportunity for OEMs and their partners. The wider introduction of AI-capable PCs in the second half of the year will also give the market a boost, delivering much-needed innovation and a compelling value proposition to users who have held off on buying new PCs during the post-pandemic downturn,” he added.
Canalys expects nearly 50 million PCs shipped in 2024 will be AI-capable, integrating a dedicated AI accelerator such as an NPU.
In terms of market share, Lenovo led the pack in Q1 2024 with a 24 percent share, registering a strong growth of eight percent and shipping 13.7 million notebooks and desktops. HP came in second place with a flat performance, shipping 12.0 million units. Dell secured the third spot but experienced a minor shipment decline of two percent year on year. Apple claimed the fourth position with a growth of 2.5 percent, buoyed 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.
Photo: Airam Dato-on
Entelechy Asia 