PCR Tech and IT retail, distribution and vendor news
Laptops continued to outgrow the rest of the market during 2007, according to the latest figures from DisplaySearch, rising 41 per cent during the year.
The results revealed that HP managed to stay on top of the global laptop market, accounting for around 20 per cent of all sales during the year.
However, the biggest news was that Taiwanese manufacturer Acer displaced Dell to become the second largest vendor of laptops globally.
Taking into account Acer’s recent purchases of Gateway and Packard Bell, the vendor managed to outsell Dell by around 600,000 units. It was just under 1.5 million units behind market leader HP.
Toshiba, the fourth largest vendor of laptops managed to hold on to its position, despite recent surges by Apple and Asus.
The report also suggested that it was those retailers that had an established retail and enterprise presence that had performed best in the changing market, suggesting that Dell’s recent move into retail may see it catch Acer this time next year.
"A few brands managed to surpass the notebook market’s amazing unit growth, but most brands had difficulty achieving that level," said John Jacobs, director of notebook research at DisplaySearch.
"While Acer’s brand outpaced the market, when their Gateway and Packard Bell acquisitions are factored into the equation, the results are less positive, indicating that their acquisitions were on a downward trend," he added.
