Source: Canalys
In 2022, the personal computer market is getting off to a good start. While shipments declined year-over-year for the first time since the first quarter of 2020, overall revenue growth remained above 15 percent. The latest Canalys data shows that in the midst of significant geopolitical impacts and weak consumer demand, global desktop and laptop shipments fell 3 percent throughout the year to just 80.1 million units. However, the market is short of supply, computer prices continue to rise, and consumer demand for high-priced personal computers is also increasing, so the market revenue reached $70 billion. Notebook shipments shrank 6 percent year-over-year, selling just 63.2 million units, while desktop shipments rose 13 percent to 16.8 million units. While shipments declined due to external shocks, solid buying and use demand kept market revenue and long-term confidence high.
Rushabh Doshi, principal analyst at Canalys, said: "Revenue in the PC industry continues to grow, so manufacturers and shareholders have reason to cheer on it. Personal computers are being used more frequently, for longer periods of time, and for a more diverse purpose than ever before. Computer ownership has grown significantly over the past two years, with more than 150 million new notebook and desktop computers added between 2019 and 2021. Even if customers are forced to delay their purchases in the short term due to price increases, the replacement of a large number of equipment is still inevitable, especially considering that more than 50% of the equipment is more than four years old. At the same time, the consumer and education markets have stagnated, but business demand will remain strong this year. The need for people to return to near-pre-pandemic levels, coupled with the need for higher-spec PCs for hybrid and telecommuters to maximize productivity, means that business IT spending will continue to rise in 2022. ”
In the first quarter of 2022, Lenovo still ranked first in the personal computer market, with shipments reaching 18.2 million units, down 10% year-on-year. HP ranked second, but saw the biggest decline among the top five manufacturers, with shipments down 18 percent year-over-year to 15.8 million units. Dell, ranked third, saw a solid 6% increase due to its focus on the commercial market, with shipments of 13.7 million units. Apple and Asus also rose aggressively, with shipments increasing by 8% and 24% respectively, ranking fourth and fifth. This marks the first time since the third quarter of 2017 that ASUS has won a place in the ranking of the top five manufacturers.
IshanDutt, senior analyst at Canalys, said: "The first quarter of 2022 brought a new round of resistance to the PERSONAL COMPUTER market. Following last year's highs, consumer and education market procurement demand is naturally slowing down, while major global events have hit the entire industry hard, negatively impacting both the supply and demand side. The war in Ukraine has pushed up the prices of oil and gas, as well as commodities such as metals and food, fueling inflation in major markets. At the same time, in major Chinese cities such as Shenzhen and Shanghai, the lockdown against the COVID-19 pandemic has created new bottlenecks in manufacturing and distribution, and it is only then that manufacturers and channel providers are beginning to gain a foothold. Faced with these unresolved issues, as well as other possible black swan events, the industry must be prepared to overcome a new round of challenges with resilience over the past two years. ”