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IDC: Strong 2013 for Personal & Entry Level Storage

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According to IDC global personal and entry-level storage (PELS) shipments reach 75.2 million units with 13.6% growth in a "strong" 2013, while revenues are up by 6.2% to $6.7 billion.

PELS covers storage solutions with 1-2 (personal) to 3-12 (entry-level) configurations aimed at individuals, small/home offices and SMBs.

PELS 2013

The year does end on a slightly sour note, since Q4 2013 shipments drop by -4.2% Y-o-Y to 20.4m units as revenues total $1.8bn with a -10.3% Y-o-Y decline.

"The PELS market finished 2013 strong even with the difficult comparison with a strong H2 2012," IDC says. "Q4 2012 showed exceptionally strong growth as the PELS market was in full recovery mode after the Thailand floods, which led to HDD shortages. Despite the resulting slight decline in Q4 2013, the PELS market was able post Y-o-Y growth for all of 2013. This continued annual growth is driven by on-going consumer education, better marketing by vendors, and progressing product evolution to address items such as higher capacity, faster transfer speeds, and mobile device integration."

HDD vendors take over 76.9% of PELS shipment share, even if the entry-level storage market is dominated by non-HDD vendors with 60.6% shipment share.

Entry-level shipments see 6.8% growth during 2013 thanks to the 4-bay category providing an easy entry point for vendors wanting to introduce entry-level products. Otherwise the segment sees flat (0.7%) shipments for higher-bay devices.

PELS Q4 2013

Meanwhile 2-bay products decline by -32.2% Y-o-Y during Q4 2013. Single-bay personal storage remains the most popular, making 98% of Q4 2013 personal storage shipments. Personal storage makes 98.8% of PELS shipments and 86.9% of revenues for Q4 2013.

When it comes to technology, the 3.5-inch form factor is making way to the more portable 2.5-inch, with 2013 shipments dropping by -18.8% as 2.5-inch shipments remain flat at 0.8%. Users are also migrating to higher capacity storage (2TB devices make 48.3% of personal 3.5-inch device shipments), while USB remains the interface of PELS customer choice with 93.3% market share.

Go WW PELS Market Sees Overall Strong Finish to 2013 According to IDC