Posted on 03/19/2013 10:10:46 AM PDT by Ernest_at_the_Beach
Weaker than expected February PC shipments prompted International Data Corporation to reassess the market and adjust its expectation for the first quarter. Whereas IDC previously expected PC shipments to decline by 7.7 percent in Q1, the market research firm now says the drop could hit double digits, followed by a mid-single-digit decline in the second quarter before a recovery is in sight.
(Excerpt) Read more at maximumpc.com ...
Drink.
Honestly, who didn't see a PC decline coming? They'll always fill a niche, but I think that they're rapidly being replaced in the home by tablets and/or smartphones.
My mother - of all people - wants an IPad with a wireless keyboard. She uses her computer to check email and look at the weather. An IPad (or similar device) is the perfet solution for her, and I suspect she's not the only one.
My mother has a Nexus tablet and she likes it, but requires a desktop, because she doesn’t want to spend her time typing documents or emails on a touchscreen. I’d wager that when pressed, most people feel the same way.
People who think that tablets and smartphones are out and out replacing full computers are not realizing that laptops and desktops have reached a point where you don’t need to buy the latest and greatest to do whatever you want with them. There isn’t a need to upgrade all the time, which translates to less sales.
Tablets are toys. Consumption devices. They’re useful for some things, but downright clunky for a lot of things. People CAN make do with them, but it is far from ideal.
The people who constantly push the conventional wisdom fail to note that tablets and smartphones are also hitting a wall in terms of power vs value. For instance, I purchased a Samsung Galaxy Note on Ebay for $230 outright and set it up with a pay-as-you-go $50 unlimited T-Mobile account. I COULD have bought the Note II, but why? Do I really require a quad core smartphone for 2x+ the price? No. And that’s coming from someone who generally stays close to the latest and greatest of everything. There just isn’t a point to doing that anymore.
I bought my 6 core desktop back in 2009. I’m a power user and I spend the majority of my day working on my desktop. I’ve replaced a few parts, added an SSD, and some ram, but I don’t intend to replace it until it either dies or I can replace it with at least 10 cores for a reasonable price. I bought my laptop in 2008. It’s a dual core AMD. I have no need of anything more than that in a laptop. What compelling reason is there to upgrade?
That’s why PC sales are down and tablet/smartphone sales will follow. The only thing keeping them going is that new people are still adopting them.
I’ve been meaning to build myself a new PC for over a year now but i keep putting it off, probably because this 5 yr old quad-core works just fine....
I have 2 desktops, 1 laptop, 1 older net-book, 2 smart phones, 1 flip phone and 3 tablets of different sizes and android versions.
best bang for the buck is the net book(with majicjack) and the flip-phone.
Windows 8.
Does nothing new that is helpful. Makes doing what you need to do more difficult and doesn’t even look cool. Of course sales are down.
You are right on both counts i think. Most do not need to do much more than surf and do email, while the PC tech. and software advances btwn 1995 and 2005 were far greater than what the 10 years since should bring. The SSD is about the most major improvement.
For me a laptop does not replace my 2005 dual core 2.8ghz PC, and while i look forward to upgrading someday, God willing i will squeeze more usefulness out this box till then.
Tablet computing, IOW, the iPad.
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