According to technology analyst Canalys, PC shipments fell 22% year-on-year to 12.8 million units in Western Europe in the third quarter (Q3) of 2022.
The declines occurred across laptops, desktops and workstations, but notebooks saw the biggest drop of 25% year-on-year to 10.4 million units due to business spending. fell, after the consumer and education sector reduced spending after the pandemic.
The bright spot in the market is the desktop, which is down only 6% thanks to large organizations still making purchases.
According to Canalys, tablet shipments also fell 13% year-on-year to 6 million units in the third quarter of 2022.
The drop in demand is not surprising given rising energy prices and costs. The main difference from a few months ago is that businesses continue to spend on new hardware.
“The decline in demand for PCs in Western Europe accelerated in the third quarter of 2023,” Canalys Research analyst Kieren Jessop said:. “Previously strong commercial spending on PCs is now declining at the same rate as the consumer segment. Small and medium-sized businesses cut back on PC purchases significantly, more than larger organizations, due to Economic headwinds reduce cash flow and rising interest rates make financing options more expensive.”
Potentially good news for PC buyers, analysts say, is that vendors will need to continue to offer promotions to stir up demand and free up inventory “in light of market conditions. forming a cold winter”.
Jessop also points to income inequality as the reason some consumers reduce spending earlier than others. This impact can be seen by purchasing more mid-range hardware compared to high-end hardware. This has resulted in increased inventories, despite higher promotional activity during the quarter.
“Consumer demand for personal computers remains constrained by rising prices, especially for energy. And as real incomes fall, demand will shift across price levels,” he noted.
“Low-end PC shipments have fallen significantly compared to the mid-range or high-end segment. This reflects the varying effects of inflation on income levels. And with disposable income expected to further decline, demand will shift from high-end to more affordable options.Suppliers with portfolios that cover broader price ranges would be best set up to take advantage. this.”
While spending on electronics during the Black Friday sale was higher than expected, planned spending during the holiday season is forecast to be the biggest drop in more than a decade. Canalys sees consumers refreshing hardware by 2024.
The only supplier in the top 5 whose sales increased year-over-year was Apple, the third largest supplier whose total sales increased from 1.9 million to 2.3 million in the third quarter. Apple started new delivery head MacBook Air with M2 silicon in June.
Market leader Lenovo fell 24.1% to 3.1 million units, while second-place HP’s shipments fell 36.8% to 2.7 million units. In fourth place, Dell’s shipments fell 18.9% to 1.9 million, while Asus’ shipments fell 24.4% to 900,000.
Apple’s iPad dominated tablet sales with 2.8 million units in the quarter, capturing a 47 percent market share, surpassing Samsung, which bought 1.2 million tablets and now has a 20.4% market share. Lenovo has an 11.9% market share with 700,000 tablets, while Amazon has a 7.4% market share after 400,000 Fire tablets shipped. Huawei shipped 200,000 tablets, accounting for 2.7% market share.
