WASHINGTON: International Data Corporation (IDC) predicts worldwide PC shipments will slip to 255.6 million this year, a 7.3 percent decline. In 2015, PC makers shipped 275.8 desktop and notebook PCs. With shipments of 152.3 million units, notebooks will remain the form factor of choice this year. Desktop PC shipments are expected to reach 103.3 million units.
PC vendors face a challenging landscape. The slowing smartphone and tablet markets isn’t translating into increased demand for PCs. Performance wise, detachable tablets are moving into notebook PC territory, further eroding demand. By 2020, IDG expects PC shipments to fall to just shy of a quarter-billion units (249.5 million) and the chances for a rebound appear remote.
