IDC: PC Market Got Clobbered in 2Q 2022

12 JULY 2022 - Crazy times for computers, mostly because these are crazy times. CNET highlights new numbers from IDC that show a slump in computer sales for the June-quarter of 2022 versus same quarter a year earlier. The firm estimates a decline in shipments of 15.3% due to three primary factors: lockdowns in China, fear of recession, and an insanely tough compare. The CNET piece points out:

PC shipments reached their highest volume in almost a decade in 2021, and despite the recent downturn, PC shipments are still higher than they were before the COVID-19 pandemic.

But “what’s past is prologue,” as the truncated quote goes. To Jitesh Ubrani, research manager for IDC's Mobile Device trackers, it reads like the crawl before one of those mid-90s dystopian flicks. Something with Dolph Lundgren, maybe. Quoting Mr. Ubrani:

Fears over a recession continue to mount and weaken demand across segments… Consumer demand for PCs has weakened in the near term and is at risk of perishing in the long term as consumers become more cautious about their spending and once again grow accustomed to computing across device types such as phones and tablets.

And just like that, I remember: A new life awaits me in the off-world colonies!

A Very Apple Issue

If you’re wondering how Apple performed - it wasn’t pretty, in IDC’s estimation. Tied for fifth-place in terms of global market share with ASUS, Apple saw shipments plunge 22.5% y-o-y. While everyone saw declines, Apple’s was among the steepest, second only to second-place HP, which saw its shipments decline 27.6%. Away from the chart though, Apple had a typically Apple problem last quarter: An inability to keep up with demand. As a piece on the IDC numbers from Cult of Mac points out:

Almost anyone buying Cupertino’s latest and greatest – the 2021 MacBook Pro and Mac Studio – faced a lengthy wait for delivery. But that was in Q2. Apple is starting to catch up with demand for these models. And the new M2 MacBook Air doesn’t have such long delivery delays.

Apple’s Q2 delivery issues made it possible for Acer to slip into fourth-place in terms of global PC market share - not a place it is expected to keep. “Barring any further supply issues,” IDC says it “expects Apple to ramp up its production in the second half of the year.”

Gartner’s Prelim. Worldwide PC Shipment Estimates for 2Q22 (Units in Thousands) - via ***MacRumors***

Gartner Begs to Differ

While IDC’s take on Mac shipments could well be classified as “gloom and doom,” competing market tracker Gartner’s reading was all “boom, boom, boom.” Where IDC saw Mac shipments decline 22.5% for last quarter versus the June-quarter of 2021, a piece from MacRumors has Gartner saying that Mac sales actually increased 9.3%. Quoting that report, based on the Gartner findings:

Mac shipments were up despite severe supply constraints that saw some MacBook Pro models delayed for multiple weeks or even months, and Apple was the only vendor to see positive growth. All other PC vendors saw a decline in shipments during the quarter due to supply chain issues.

And there you have it. Mac shipments were either terrible or awesome.