PC Market Returns to Growth in 4Q23

The worldwide PC market ended its streak of annual shipment declines in the last quarter of 2023, posting a modest year-on-year growth of 3%, according to Canalys data. Total shipments of desktops and notebooks rose to 65.3 million units. Shipments of notebooks hit 51.6 million units, up 4% from 2022, while desktop shipments landed at 13.7 million units, declining 1%.

For the full year 2023, PC shipments totaled 247 million units, marking a 13% drop compared to 2022. The market is now poised for growth, claims Canalys, with AI-capable PCs set to provide an additional boost during the ongoing refresh cycle and beyond. By 2027, Canalys forecasts that over 170 million AI-capable PCs will be shipped, with nearly 60% being deployed in commercial settings.

“2023 was a challenging year for the PC industry, but companies have remained resilient and can now look forward to an improving landscape,” said Himani Mukka, Research Manager at Canalys. “The cautious optimism across key players in the market has been borne out by a stronger holiday season compared to last year and inventory corrections in the previous quarters have helped support renewed sell-in. As macroeconomic conditions continue to improve, companies and individuals that have delayed their purchasing for many quarters are now set to resume spending on PCs.”

“To capitalize on the demand uptick, the PC industry will now deliver meaningful innovation through on-device AI capabilities in PCs, with 2024 set to be a bumper year for such devices,” said Ishan Dutt, Principal Analyst at Canalys. “A slew of announcements from both OEMs and chipset vendors at CES will set the stage for more products to be brought to market later in the year. We expect one in five PCs shipped this year to be AI-capable, incorporating a dedicated chipset or block, such as an NPU, to run on-device AI workloads. Adoption will ramp up quickly thereafter, especially in the commercial sector, where the benefits of on-device AI related to productivity, security, and cost management will become a key consideration for businesses.”

Lenovo sealed the top spot in the PC market rankings for 4Q23, shipping 16.1 million units and posting 3% annual growth. It was also the largest shipping vendor for the full year 2023, posting 59.1 million units. HP, securing the second position, recorded a 6% year-on-year growth in shipments in Q4. Its overall annual shipments for 2023 amounted to 52.9 million units, a marginal 4% decrease from 2022. Dell retained third position in both the Q4 and full-year 2023 rankings, shipping 9.9 million units and 40 million units, respectively.

Apple secured the fourth position in Q4 by shipping 6.6 million units globally, achieving 9% growth. The vendor maintained fourth spot in the full-year standings as well, experiencing a 14% decline from 2022 with total units reaching 23 million units. Acer secured the fifth position with a 12% year-over-year growth, shipping 4 million units in Q4, but Asus occupied the fifth spot in the full-year rankings for 2023, totaling 16 million units and experiencing a 21% annual decline compared to 2022.