11 February 2008
by Paul Kunert
For the first time notebooks outsold desktops in the UK last year and with vendors focusing more on the mobile platform, the gap will continue to widen in certain sectors in 2008, analysts have predicted.
A total of 3.3 million PCs were shipped in the UK during the fourth quarter, representing 9.3 per cent growth, taking the tally for the year to 11.5 million units and expanding the market 11 per cent.
But where desktop and notebook sales were evenly split in 2006, notebooks accounted for 61 per cent of the market in the fourth quarter 2007 and 55 per cent for the year as price falls spurred demand.
Desktop sales in 2007 declined 7 per cent year on year, while mobile PC volumes soared 40 per cent, further evidence that the notebook boom has continued, said Ranjit Atwal, principal analyst at Gartner.
"Most vendors found it difficult to drive their desktop business in the consumer and professional markets, particularly in the fourth quarter when sales declined 15 per cent year on year," he said.
He believed the notebook would remain the dominant PC form factor and the market had a "one-way ticket to mobiles" because the pricing differential made them more appealing to users.
Data from Context showed notebooks constituted 60 per cent of UK PC sales last year, but its lead was less apparent in the business sector than consumer, where market share edged above 60 per cent.
The outlook for desktops depended on each sector, according to Jeremy Davies, senior partner at Context, arguing he could see further declines in sales of desktops in the SME and consumer spaces.
