The netbook phenomenon is beginning to cool off, according to market watcher Context, causing overall UK notebook shipments to fall for the first time ever in June.

Context collects sales-out data from 40 distributors across Europe, including Ingram Micro, Computer 2000 and Westcoast.

Notebook shipments through UK distributors fell 5.7 per cent year on year in June – the first ever annual drop.

Context put this down to a sudden collapse in the netbook market as unit sales plunged by a third compared with their peak in March. The netbook penetration of the notebook market has also stagnated, at about 22 per cent since April.

Context chief executive Jeremy Davies said end users were beginning to look again at regular-size notebooks after vendors such as HP launched sub-£300 models.

“The explosion in netbooks has been holding up unit sales for the last few months, so if that starts to slip it will be dire,” said Davies.

Stewart Hayward, commercial director at online VAR WStore, argued that the netbook market had been overhyped and the form factor would go the same way as the tablet PC.

“Netbooks do not fulfil the requirement of mobile workers who want a fully featured product and we are getting a very limited number of repeat purchases,” he said.

“Like the tablet, netbooks will have to find a niche where they can fit in.”

According to Context, overall third-quarter PC unit sales through UK distributors rose three per cent in the second quarter. The quarterly total was dragged down by a “record slump” in June, when shipments dropped 11.3 per cent annually and 14.5 per cent month on month.

“June was a terrible month for everyone and caught a lot of people by surprise,” Davies said.

HP led the overall standings in Q2 with a 43.4 per cent share, with Acer and Toshiba rounding out the top three. However, Samsung was the quarter’s big winner, almost quadrupling shipments on an annual comparison.

“Samsung is relentless. These guys have a plan and will sit back and execute,” said Davies.

Bobby Watkins, UK managing director of vendor Acer, agreed that the channel had suffered a poor June, but he rejected suggestions that the netbook market is slowing.

“The UK mobile market is growing in the region of 12-14 per cent and netbooks are taking a bigger proportion of the market,” he said.