IDC: PC Shipments in 2015 Declined 10.6pct

[engine]

According to IDC, PC shipments for 2015 declined by over 10%, which is a significant drop. I wonder how much of that is down to users deciding to upgrade to Win 10 for free. If they found their machine worked, they'd stick with it. If not, they'll upgrade.

IDC predicts the outlook is a little more rosy as it sees more sales coming from corporate sectors.

Worldwide PC shipments totaled 71.9 million units in the fourth quarter of 2015 (4Q15), a year-on-year decline of -10.6%, according to the International Data Corporation (IDC ) Worldwide Quarterly PC Tracker . Although total shipments were in line with already conservative expectations, the news nonetheless ended 2015 as the first year below 300 million units since 2008. The holiday quarter achieved a modest uptick compared to the third quarter, but the year-on-year decline in 2015 shipments was nevertheless the largest in history, surpassing the decline of -9.8% in 2013. IDC: PC Shipments in 2015 Declined 10.6pct [idc.com]

[not2easy]

I read about this in an article that compared the IDC data with an analysis done at Gartner Data: [cb.pr...]

All told, manufacturers shipped a total of 288.7 million PCs last year, down 8 percent from 2014, according to researchers at Gartner. Analysts at International Data Corp., using different methodology, put the total at 276 million and the decline at 10.4 percent.

Apple, however, saw an increase of roughly 6 percent, according to both firms. While other major PC-makers have seen ups and downs, Apple alone has enjoyed gains in each of the last three years.

It looks like the free WIN10 offer had some effect and the home users moving to Smart Phones and Tablets added to the decline. Even Mac Sales were down as the gains go to iPads and iPhones. The increase in the Chinese market which is now the #2 market worldwide for PC sales has been mostly in mobile devices, not desktops.

[engine]

It's interesting to compare the two sources, thanks not2easy.

They both show a trend, which seems about right.

Hand-held devices are the common choice for many as most don't need spreadsheets and powerpoint, and see no requirement for something desktop-sized. Laptops solve that issue, of course. I read recently that there's a demand for much smaller technology, instead of desktop machines. For example, Microsoft's Surface is an attractive proposition, however, for the home user it's still a little expensive. Chromebooks solve that price problem, however, that means storing all your files in the cloud.