Computer market declined

According to market research firm Gartner (USA), the number of computers sold in 2011 grew only 9.3% compared to the expected 10.5%. Laptops and netbooks bear strong competition from tablets.

Gartner said 385 million computers will be sold in 2011, up 9.3 percent from 2010. "Laptops no longer boost the market due to consumer interest in mini-notebook products. is declining , " said Ranjit Atwal, Gartner research director.

Mini-notebooks are low-end computers, designed to be lightweight and cheaper than traditional laptops. They are mainly used for Internet access.

Computer market declined Picture 1
The computer market is suffering from strong competition from tablets.(Photo: Ha Mai).

Tablets such as iPads play an important role in the development of mobile products. These products make users delay buying new laptops. However, Ranjit Atwal said that individuals are still not ready to replace laptops with tablets.

According to Gartner, the computer market is growing thanks to businesses rather than relying on individual consumers. " Enterprises with larger budgets should spend a lot of money and they have a need to replace older computers ," said Raphael Vasquez, Gartner expert.

Global computer market in the first quarter of 2011 declined with 84.3 million units sold, down by 1.1% compared to the same period last year and compared with the 3% expected by Gartner. IDC also analyzed the market for the first time, down 3.2% to 80.6 million units since the end of the economic crisis at the end of June 2009.

"Computer prices are falling but still not attracting users. They are switching to tablets and other multimedia devices," Gartner expert Mikako Kitagawa said.

Gartner recorded the US laptop market decline for three consecutive quarters. Japanese market also decreased by 13.1%, Europe, Middle East, Africa decreased by 2.8%. However, Asia Pacific increased 4.1% and 5.4% in Latin America.

Among manufacturers, Hewlett-Packard remained the number one (17.6% market share under Gartner and 18.9% by IDC) despite a decline (3.4% or 2.8%). . Gartner said Acer continued to rank second (12.9% market share, down 12.2%), followed by Dell (11.9% market share, down 2.2% revenue). However, according to IDC, Dell surpassed Acer with a market share of 12.8% and 11.2% respectively.