Q3 shipments of client PCs in Taiwan saw 29% QoQ increase, says IDC Taiwan
Unit shipments of Taiwan's client PC market (including both desktop and notebook PCs) in the third quarter of 2008 reached 757,400 units, a 29% quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) increase and 2.9% year-on-year (YoY) climb, according to IDC Taiwan, the local branch of the famous international market intelligence and consulting firm.
IDC Taiwan attributed the shipment growth to the fact that major PC brands have continuously pushed their netbook, or mini-note PC, models for the rapidly emerging market segment; while third quarter is a traditional high season for client PC sales due mainly to the back-to-school purchases.
Sales of conventional desktop and notebook PCs, suffering impact from netbook rivals, however, saw YoY declines.
Dickie Chang, market analyst of IDC Taiwan's personal computing solution group, pointed out the increasing netbooks pushed by almost all PC brands have led to quality changes in domestic client PC market, especially consumer's recognition of and anticipation toward notebook-PCs.
General consumers' price recognition of a notebook PC has fallen from NT$30,000 to NT$40,000 (US$909 to US$1,212 at US$1: NT$33) to some NT$10,000 (US$303), Chang said, and such shift would further compress the profit margins of both notebook PC makers and distributors. "In addition, concerns of a PC model's price and color/styling have exceeded that of hardware equipment, performance, and matched software," Chang stressed.
Third-quarter shipments of notebook PCs (including netbooks) in Taiwan reached 323,600 units, up 53.3% QoQ. Local consumers can more easily select their preferred products now because their choices have been increasing thanks to makers' aggressive demonstration of new models. At the same time, more and more netbook vendors have tied or are trying to tie up with telecom carriers so as to bundle their products.
Currently in the Taiwan markety, Asustek Computer Inc. (ASUS) and Acer Inc. (Acer) are the top two suppliers of notebook PCs, followed by foreign counterparts HP and Lenovo.
A total of 433,700 desktop PCs were shipped during the same period, IDC Taiwan said, up 15.3% QoQ. The family segment saw a 30% QoQ growth due to the back-to-school purchases, but a 4.7% YoY decrease. Shipments of the business segment, which suffered impacts from unfavorable economic factors, saw a 14.4% YoY decline. The top-four nameplates remained unchanged as Acer, ASUS, HP, and Lenovo.
IDC Taiwan forecasted that the fourth-quarter client-PC market in Taiwan would might face a drop for the first time in 2008, due to the global financial woes and weak consumer confidence.
