HP is still the top dog in computer sales around the world, at least according to IDC. But those sales continue to plummet.
Released today, IDC's Worldwide Quarterly PC Tracker pegged fourth-quarter global PC shipments at 89.8 million units, down 6.4 percent from the same quarter in 2011.
The drop was actually worse than IDC's forecast of 4.4 percent and marked the first time the industry saw a year-on-year decline during the holiday season. For 2012 as a whole, PC shipments were down by 3.2 percent.
Windows 8 officially launched at the end of October. But Microsoft's latest OS did little to rejuvenate sour PC sales in a market sidelined by hot demand for smartphones and tablets.
The results came as no surprise to IDC, which expected the second half of 2012 to be a rough period for PC vendors. Beyond the lure of smartphones and tablets, questions about the use of touch on new Windows devices versus tablets has slowed spending on PCs, according to IDC.
"Although Q3 was focused on the clearing of Windows 7 inventory, preliminary research indicates the clearance did not help significantly the uptake of Windows 8 systems." IDC analyst Jay Chou said in a statement. "The PC ecosystem has thus far not adequately conveyed a fuller spectrum of the benefits of the latest Wintel platform. Lost in the shuffle to promote a touch-centric PC, vendors have not forcefully stressed other features that promote a more secure, reliable, and effici... [Read more]
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