HP Narrowly Wins #1 Notebook Share

HP edged out Lenovo for the first time in years by a slim margin to regain leadership in the notebook PC market, according to Strategy Analytics. Overall, the industry picked up pace last quarter as the world moves on to new options of remote working, education and digitalisation, driving 34% year-on-year shipment growth. This high growth rate was actually limited by tight supply in the face of record demand, adding more drama to the competitive landscape as winter and more COVID lockdowns approach.

The third quarter would have been even more productive for some vendors if they were able to deliver more devices to meet high demand. Supply will remain a key concern as demand is expected to stay high amid rising COVID-19 infections around the world as the Northern Hemisphere enters a very difficult winter. With the pandemic still lingering across the globe, consumers have started their purchases before the holiday season to prepare for the new ‘normal’ of working and studying from home.

Chromebook delivered strong growth in both commercial and consumer segments as the operating system remained the favourite option for schools and students in developed markets. Meanwhile, the Gaming and Ultramobile segments performed very well as consumers spent more money on notebooks being used for multiple tasks (entertainment and productivity) for an extended period of time.