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Market Trends - Stats

IDC: Solid Q2 Growth for AR/VR Headsets

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IDC: Solid Q2 Growth for AR/VR Headsets

According to IDC the global market for augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) headsets is up by 25.5% Y-o-Y on Q2 2017, as shipments total 2.1 million.

Volumes are "slightly" down on a Q-o-Q basis, but recent price cuts on existing products and new product announcements should build the groundwork for a successful holiday season.

"Growth in the VR market has been rather sluggish compared to other recently introduced technologies as the amount of investment and, more importantly, the need for end user education is extremely high for VR," the analyst remarks. "Though the recent price cuts across all major platforms will help alleviate one of the barriers to adoption, providing consumers the opportunity to learn about products and try before they buy is still a significant hurdle faced by most companies."

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IDC: Personal Computing Devices Remain in Decline

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IDC: Personal Computing Devices Remain in Decline

According to IDC the global personal computing device (PCD) is set to remain in "slight" decline through 2021, with shipments falling from 435.1 million units in 2016 to 398.3m in 2021, making a CAGR of -1.7% for the 5-year period.

The analyst defines "personal computing devices" as traditional PCs (combining desktops, notebooks and workstations) and tablets (slates and detachables).

While the PCD market will not see growth throughout the forecast period, it should see some interesting trends-- notebook PCs show "small but steady" Y-o-Y growth in all years but 2018, and hybrid devices are the fastest growing PCD segment with a 5-year CAGR of over 14%. Ultraslim notebooks should also grow quickly with a CAGR of 18% through 2021, and the commercial segment will be a "relative bright spot" reaching stability in 2017 before growth in 2019 and beyond.

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What Drives EMEA PC Market Recovery?

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What Drives EMEA PC Market Recovery?

IDC reports the EMEA PC market continues to improve in Q2 2017-- shipments are down by just -0.6% Y-o-Y to reach 15.9 million units, with positive performance in notebook shipments growing by 3.1% Y-o-Y.

Further boosting growth is "strong" performance in CEE (5.2%) and MEA (11.1%), while W. Europe is heading towards stabilisation (0.4%). Fueling commercial notebook shipments are public and private sector investments in CEMA, together with stronger economic confidence in major mature markets and back-to-school deals.

Commercial notebook shipments are up by 18.6% Y-o-Y in CEMA and 3% Y-o-Y in W. Europe, while consumer notebooks are up by 3.5% Y-o-Y in CEMA and down by -2% Y-o-Y in W. Europe.

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Gartner: 2017 Device Shipments Essentially Flat

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Gartner: 2017 Device Shipments Essentially Flat

Gartner forecasts global shipments of PCs, tablets and smartphones to reach 2.3 billion in 2017-- a -0.3% decline from 2016, with the market expected to return to slight growth in 2018 with a 1.6% shipment increase.

"Overall, the shipment growth of the device market is steady for the first time in many years," the analyst says. "PC shipments are slightly lower while phone shipments are slightly higher-- leading to a slight downward revision in shipments from the previous forecast."

As one might expect, PC shipments remain on the decline, with 2017 dropping by -3%. However such decline is slower than in recent years, thanks to Windows 10 replacement purchasing. The prices of components such as DRAM and SSDs continue to increase, creating headwinds for the global PC market and (to a lesser extent) the smartphone market. Manufacturers are absorbing at least some of the impact of PC component prices, due to fears that a PC price increase will reduce their share of a competitive market.

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DigiTimes: Mining Drives Graphics Cards

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DigiTimes: Mining Drives Graphics Cards

According to DigiTimes the want for improved graphics in games is not the only driver for the GPU market-- customers also use graphics cards for Bitcoin mining, following recent price increases for the successful cryptocurrency.

For the curious, this week saw 1BTC reach the record worth of over $2900. Back in March 2017 the price was around $1000, making for nearly a 300% increase in value in the space of 3 months.

As a result, the graphics card market is enjoying "strong" Q2 2017 sales, despite the quarter being the traditionally slow season. The most popular cards for Bitcoin mining are AMD-based, but Nvidia cards also see increased demand despite higher prices. Either way, the increase in the popularity of Bitcoin mining has lead to the two companies planning cards designed specifically for the task.

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IDC: Commercial Notebooks, Detachables to Drive Personal Computing Devices

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IDC: Commercial Notebooks, Detachables to Drive Personal Computing Devices

According to IDC, global personal computing device (PCDs) shipments, bringing together traditional PCs and tablets, will decline from 435 million units in 2016 to 405.2m in 2021, for a 5-year CAGR of -1.4%.

The analyst reduced its overall PCD forecast from the previous version by up to 3% depending on the year, with the largest reductions coming from the tablet category. However, the collective PCD market is set to return to "marginally small" growth in 2019, starting from the modest EMEA recovery of Q1 2017, the first quarter of positive Y-o-Y PC growth since 2012.

IDC expects traditional PC shipments to return to slow decline, until the positive growth forecast of 2019. Desktop volumes should continue to decline as consumers move to other platforms, while the commercial market and a "steady" move to ultraslim and convertibles boost notebook shipments.

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Gartner: Spending on Devices Up, Shipments Flat

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Gartner: Spending on Devices Up, Shipments Flat

According to Gartner higher PC, ultramobile and mobile phone ASPs will lead to 2017 end-user spending worth nearly $600 billion, a 2% increase, even if unit shipments are to remain essentially flat.

Gartner forecasts ASPs for computing devices and mobile phones will increase by 2% in 2017. The reasons boil down to two-- increasing component prices (mainly for PCs but also phones) and customer interest in value and higher quality phones overriding the want for a bargain.

"Across the world, the device market is becoming less price-sensitive," the analyst remarks. "Consumers and businesses are seeking better products that suit their lifestyles, rather than just opting for the cheapest products."

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IDC: Personal Computing Devices on the Decline

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IDC: Personal Computing Devices on the Decline

According to IDC global shipments of what it calls personal computing devices (PCDs)-- combined traditional PCs and tablets-- are forecast to decline from 435 million units in 2016 to 418.2m by 2021, making a CAGR of -0.8%.

The forecast follows a stronger-than-expected shipments for traditional PCs in 2016. A combination of aggressive promotion in H2 2016 and a tightening component supply for notebooks helped drive stronger volume across both consumer and commercial segments in Q4. As a result, commercial notebook shipments ended on a positive note with 2% Y-o-Y growth, while consumer notebooks declined by just -1% Y-o-Y.

On the tablet side, slate shipments continue to decline as expected while detachable/hybrid devices see "dramatic" decline in Q4 2016. This is due to the segment's dependence on individual product launch cycles from the likes of Apple and Microsoft. The lack of Q4 product refreshes lead to a -26.1% Y-o-Y decline for hybrids and a "more tempered" outlook for the entire tablet market, even if IDC believes the growing popularity of hybrids will lead to a return to growth over the next 5 years.

 

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ABI: Standalone Headsets Drive VR Market

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ABI: Standalone Headsets Drive VR Market

Virtual Reality (VR) is set to "thrive off a swath of new and compelling content choices" after a content-starved market launch, ABI Research reports-- total VR device shipments are forecast to reach 110 million by 2021.

Currently mobile-reliant VR devices (such as the Samsung Gear VR and Google Daydream) lead the market, but the analyst predicts standalone headsets will see a 405% CAGR through 2021, compared to the 42% CAGR of mobile VR. The global market already has new players such as Royole and Pico, and many other Chinese vendors are expected to expand into VR.

“Mobile VR built a solid foundation for the overall market over the past few years, but standalone VR devices will eventually drive it,” ABI adds. “Low cost and high accessibility has, and will continue to, drive VR adoption with mobile devices and associated VR accessories. However, a trend toward standalone devices is surfacing, and will continue over the next five years until mobile and standalone VR devices see parity in terms of shipments.”

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