Notebooks give PCs a chance

IDC reports continued improvement in the business sector and a rise in consumer spending in Q2 2003

Things are looking up in the UK PC sector thanks to continued improvement in the business sector and a rise in consumer spending in the second quarter of 2003.

According to the latest figures from analyst IDC, the UK PC sector achieved 15.7 per cent growth year on year, driven mainly by the phenomenal growth in the notebook sector, which surged ahead by 41.4 per cent.

The continued success of notebook computers is being helped by a decline in prices, a shift away from desktop computing and the arrival of new technologies, including Intel's Centrino.

Notebooks might be the star but desktops also recorded growth of 6.3 per cent on last year, while servers saw 18.8 per cent growth.

"Low interest rates combined with readily available credit have given a vital boost to the previously flagging consumer desktop market," said Ian Gibbs, research analyst for IDC's European Personal Computing Group.

"Aggressive pricing strategies have done a great deal to boost stagnating desktop shipments and have added considerable momentum to the already booming consumer notebook market. Consumer notebook shipments have grown by an impressive 94.8 per cent year on year."

Terry Fisher, pre-sales and product manager at Compusys, said: "We are selling a lot more servers and laptops now than last year.

"Desktop sales are finally starting to pick up too, as companies refresh machines bought in 1999. The education sector has been very strong."

The commercial PC market is still headed for moderate improvement, IDC claimed, with a year-on-year growth of almost 27 per cent in commercial notebooks outweighing a slight dip in commercial PC sales.

As in Q1, the commercial upswing is mainly visible in the SME sector, which is being increasingly targeted by the key vendors. Corporate demand is still weak, but businesses are finally starting to upgrade outdated systems.