Lenovo topped the market with 26% market share and Chromebook shipments grew 133% year-on-year
As remote working and e-learning continue worldwide, demand for Notebook PCs was at its highest ever in Q4 2020, driving 54% year-on-year growth for notebook shipments.
The Notebook PC industry picked up pace in the last quarter as consumer demand supplemented sustained work and school-from-home demand, according to Strategy Analytics’ latest report. There is no doubt that Notebook PCs are more personal for consumers during the COVID-19 pandemic, with multiple computing devices per household trending higher.
The full report from Strategy Analytics’ Connected Computing Devices (CCD) service, Preliminary Global Notebook PC Shipments and Market Share: Q4 2020 Results can be found here.
Chirag Upadhyay, Industry Analyst said,
“While every vendor posted shockingly high notebook shipment growth during the quarter, there was an interesting trend behind the numbers. Gaming and Chromebook volumes were very strong; with e-learning still in effect and consumers looking for entertainment ahead of the cold winter months, buyers took advantage of great deals during the holiday season. Lenovo stacked those trends on top of meeting strong commercial demand to lead the market.”
Eric Smith, Director – Connected Computing added,
“Strain on the supply chain and rising component costs will be a key concern as demand is expected to stay high in 2021. Conversely, the world is still in a precarious place with controlling the spread of COVID and vendors must be prepared for the toughest of situations if worldwide commercial orders fall along with falling GDP and other patches of market uncertainty.”
Exhibit 1: All Vendors Showed High Double-digit Growth on WFH/LFH Demand, Holiday Shopping1
Global Notebook PC Shipments by Vendor | ||||||||
Vendor | Q4 ’20 | 2020 | Q4 ’19 | 2019 | Quarterly Growth Y/Y | Annual Growth Y/Y | ||
Lenovo | 17.9 | 54.9 | 12.1 | 44.2 | 47% | 24% | ||
HP | 15.8 | 52.2 | 9.6 | 37.5 | 64% | 39% | ||
Dell | 11.5 | 35.4 | 7.0 | 27.7 | 65% | 28% | ||
Apple | 6.3 | 19.7 | 4.0 | 15.7 | 58% | 26% | ||
Acer | 5.6 | 16.5 | 3.5 | 12.4 | 59% | 33% | ||
Others | 12.7 | 48.1 | 9.0 | 34.8 | 40% | 38% | ||
Totals | 69.7 | 226.8 | 45.3 | 172.3 | 54% | 32% | ||
Global Notebook PC Market Share by Vendor | ||||||||
Vendor | Q4 ’20 | 2020 | Q4 ’19 | 2019 | ||||
Lenovo | 25.6% | 24.2% | 26.8% | 25.7% | ||||
HP | 22.6% | 23.0% | 21.2% | 21.8% | ||||
Dell | 16.6% | 15.6% | 15.4% | 16.1% | ||||
Apple | 9.1% | 8.7% | 8.8% | 9.1% | ||||
Acer | 8.0% | 7.3% | 7.7% | 7.2% | ||||
Others | 18.2% | 21.2% | 20.0% | 20.2% | ||||
Totals | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% | ||||
Source: Strategy Analytics’ Connected Computing Devices service | ||||||||
Exhibit 2: Chromebook Sales Hit Triple-digit Growth for 2 Straight Quarters1
Global Notebook PC Shipments by Operating System | |||||||||
Operating System | Q4 ’20 | 2020 | Q4 ’19 | 2019 | Quarterly Growth Y/Y | Annual Growth Y/Y | |||
Windows | 51.1 | 170.6 | 35.6 | 135.9 | 43% | 26% | |||
Chrome | 11.4 | 33.7 | 4.9 | 18.2 | 133% | 86% | |||
MacOS | 6.3 | 19.7 | 4.0 | 15.7 | 58% | 26% | |||
Others | 0.9 | 2.7 | 0.7 | 2.5 | 26% | 8% | |||
Totals | 69.7 | 226.8 | 45.3 | 172.3 | 54% | 32% | |||
Global Notebook PC Market Share by Operating System | |||||||||
Operating System | Q4 ’20 | 2020 | Q4 ’19 | 2019 | |||||
Windows | 73.3% | 75.2% | 78.7% | 78.9% | |||||
Chrome | 16.4% | 14.9% | 10.9% | 10.5% | |||||
MacOS | 9.1% | 8.7% | 8.8% | 9.1% | |||||
Others | 1.3% | 1.2% | 1.6% | 1.5% | |||||
Totals | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% | |||||
Source: Strategy Analytics’ Connected Computing Devices service | |||||||||
1 All figures are rounded
