On the back of increased Work from Home requirements and onlne learning at schools, the demand for PCs has registered strong growth in the Septemberquarter. According to data from research agency IDC, the Indian PC market reported a 9.2 per cent growth in the July-September quarter, the largest in the last 28 quarters. This translates to 3.4 million units shipped during the quarter. The demand has been primarily driven by the the consumer segment, which recorded its biggest quarter ever, with 2 million shipments, growing 41.7 per cent year-on-year and 167.2 per cent from the previous quarter. The enterprise segment grew marginally by 3.1 per cent year-on-year.

“Schools and colleges continued to function virtually, leading to a surge in demand for consumer notebooks, especially in large cities. Despite the supply challenges, vendors were able to stock up for the upcoming online festivals,” said IDC in a release. IDC classifies desktops, notebooks and workstations as personal computing devices

Dynamics of education

The dynamics of education have changed post-Covid. Students are trying to connect remotely, and this has altered everything in the ecosystem. The demand is expected to be strong as PC penetration continues to be under-penetrated. Additionally, the demand for notebook PCs, remains much higher than the current supply, and is expected to spill over in the future. “With the pandemic still on, there is uncertainty over when and to what extent schools and colleges will return to physical classrooms; virtual learning will continue,” said Rich Henderson, Director for driving Global Education Strategy and Solutions

HP retained the top position in the overall PC market with a share of 28.2 per cent in the September quarter. HP also recorded a strong quarter in both consumer and commercial segments, with a 16.6 per cent increase in shipments when compared to the year-ago period. Lenovo was marginally ahead of Dell with a 21.7 per cent share in its overall shipments, and reported a 27 per cent yearly growth in the consumer segment. Apple’s shipments also grew 19.4 per cent as it ended its biggest quarter of shipments in the country. The company has upped its efforts in India by launching its online store, which has a full range of products and provides support directly to customers across the country.

Bharath Shenoy, market analyst for PC Devices at IDC India, states: “There is still a lot of uncertainty if and when will the schools and colleges return to physical classrooms at full strength. This is forcing students to manage all their learning virtually. This demand is expected to stay strong as India remains underpenetrated in PCs. To add to this, the growing broadband connectivity in the country is making online learning easier for students. Hence, this opportunity will continue to be relevant for PC vendors for at least a few more quarters.”

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