Personal Computer (PC) sales have held steady or increased each of the last 11 years, but that trend is expected to change in 2012 according to industry researchers at IHS.
Slash Gear reports that for the first time since the dot-com bust in the early 2000s, shipments of PCs are expected to decline 1.2 percent from last year. Back in 2011, 352.8 million units were shipped and, in 2012, that number is expected to be 348.7 million units.
“There was great hope through the first half that 2012 would prove to be a rebound year for the PC market,” IHS computer systems analyst Craig Stice wrote to Oregon Live . “Now three quarters through the year, the usual boost from the back-to-school season appears to be a bust, and both AMD and Intel’s third-quarter outlooks appear to be flat to down.”
The optimism in the industry stemmed from the glimpses of Windows 8 and the release of various ultrabooks, but the sales haven’t picked up. Some are still hopeful that Windows 8 innovation will provide a boost, but PCs are set to have their worst sales year since 2001.
Intel, which is the dominant force in the PC market, cut its third-quarter sales forecast by $1 billion last month. The company, which makes microprocessors for 80 percent of the worlds PCs, trails badly in the mobile market as most smartphones use a chip from rival company ARM Holdings.
As mobile technology improves, many are electing to hold off on purchasing PCs, instead using their mobile devices. The PC market also faces stiff competition from Apple’s iPad
