Gartner cuts 2011 global PC growth forecast

Worldwide personal computer sales are on track to set a new record this year but tablets like Apple's iPad are taking a bite out of the sector, technology research firm Gartner said Monday.Worldwide PC sales are forecast to total 352.4 million units in 2010, up 14.3 percent over last year, Gartner said, but down from the firm's previous 2010 PC sales forecast in September of 17.9 percent growth.In 2011, worldwide PC sales are forecast to reach 409 million units, up 15.9 percent over this year but down from Gartner's earlier estimate of 18.1 percent growth next year.

By TechCrunch: By Ingrid Lunden

Shipments of mobile personal computers surged worldwide in the first three months of 2010 due to the popularity of low-cost mini-notebooks, Gartner said Tuesday.Worldwide mobile PC shipments totaled 49.4 million units in the first quarter of this year, a 43.4 percent increase from the same period in 2009, according to the industry-tracking firm.The year-over-year climb was the greatest in eight years and was estimated to represent about 36 billion dollars in spending by mobile computer buyers.

Zacks.com submits: As per the latest findings of leading technology research firm Gartner (IT), worldwide PC shipments are expected to grow 19.7%, reaching 366.1 million units in 2010. The firm also expects that spending on PCs will increase by 12.2% to a level of $245 billion.

One of the fundamental creeds held by the proponents behind every new technology and gizmo market, including cell phones, smart phones, tablets, Sony Walkmen, 8-tracks, VHS tapes, juice extractors, tape rewinders, etc., is that their growth rate (and by implication the consumers' discretionary income), is complete

Worldwide personal computer sales grew just over three percent in the fourth quarter, less than forecast, as new tablets such as Apple's iPad and game consoles took a bite out of the market, research firm Gartner said Wednesday.Gartner said worldwide PC shipments, which do not include sales of tablet computers, totaled 93.5 million units in the fourth quarter, up 3.1 percent from a year ago but lower than the 4.8 percent growth forecast previously.

The average selling price of iPads continued to fall in the first quarter, according to Apple's earnings released yesterday. That's a sign of the how competitive the tablet market has become as prices drop and cheaper mini-tablets proliferate. 

A few years ago, Apple held a remarkable competitive position in the tablet market. The company was not only was first-to-market (Apple basically invented the tablet category). Apple also had both the premium product AND the lowest price. As competitors scrambled to catch up with the iPad, most of the early competitive tablets were both worse than the iPad and more expensive. That is an extremely rare position for a company to be in. And it's no surprise that Apple basically had the tablet market to itself for a couple of years.