New research has claimed that computer sales have plummeted as we head into the holiday season, but there may be bright spots that signal an overhaul in the way we think about computing.
Findings from analyst firm Canalys suggest that US shipments of desktop, laptop and workstation computers fell 12% in the third quarter of 2022 compared to the same period last year.
Laptops saw the biggest drop, which Canalys attributes to "cautious business spending" as well as a drop in consumer demand.
PC sales 2022
Fewer people were also looking to buy tablets, the report says, which could be partly due to wildly inflated prices in recent months.
While Apple's updated flagship 12,9-inch iPad Pro was unchanged at €1,099 in the US, other markets saw significant cost increases with the introduction of the M2 model. The UK price fell from €999 to €1,249.
Canalys research analyst Brian Lynch explains that "the previously resilient commercial segment has begun to decline, posting its first year-over-year decline in 2022."
Lynch continues: "Looking ahead, the US PC market will face new headwinds... Despite the fourth quarter holiday season, the market will experience a continued downturn."
Apple moved the most units by far in Q2022 2, but Canalys research reveals that many of these included unrealized sales from prior quarters, combined with specific demand for new high-end MXNUMX devices released.
iPads also accounted for more than half of sales, helping Dell maintain its leading position in the market with the largest share of desktops and laptops, followed by HP in third place.
While the news looks bleak for traditional computing devices, this could be a sign of a shift in trend towards more portable devices. Amazon tablet sales rose 19,5% year-on-year, narrowing the gap between Amazon and Apple, which has shifted its focus away from its budget models. TCL saw its tablet market share increase by 133,2%, selling around 600.000 units out of around 200.000.
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