Lenovo has landed a blow on arch-rival Acer by regaining third spot in the global PC standings in the second quarter, according to the latest data from market-watcher isuppli.
The China-based vendor achieved 22.9 per cent sequential growth in the three months to June, the largest increase among the top 10 PC suppliers. Its market share consequently rose from 6.4 to 7.9 per cent - enough to wrest the third spot back from Acer, which saw unit shipments drop back by 0.2 per cent.
Isuppli described Lenovo’s accomplishment as “remarkable”, given that overall shipments declined by 1.7 per cent, or 1.03 million units.
Matthew Wilkins, principal analyst for computer platforms at iSuppli, said: “Lenovo’s sales were propelled by strong demand in the domestic Chinese market. The company previously stated that it would deliver a stronger performance in the second quarter than it did in the first, and it duly delivered.”
Lenovo, which bought IBM’s PC unit two years ago, will be pleased to get one over Acer after seeing its rival scupper its bid for European PC maker Packard Bell (CRN, August 28).
Acer acquired US outfit Gateway shortly after the US firm opted to exercise its Right of First Refusal clause to snatch Packard Bell from Lenovo’s hands, a right it gained from its purchase of eMachines in 2004.
And isuppli warned that Lenovo’s joy could be short-lived, estimating that Acer will gain 2.5 percentage points of marketshare through the double-acquisition - enough to reclaim third spot.
Meanwhile, HP, Apple and Dell also enjoyed strong quarters.
HP clung on to the top spot as it increased market share from 17.2 to 18.3 per cent quarter-on-quarter.
Following a period of market share losses, second-placed Dell posted a strong 5.6 per cent sequential rise in shipments - the second best performance among the top five.
And Apple also enjoyed a lively three months as shipments powered up 17 per cent on a quarter-on-quarter basis.
Further reading:
Do you agree?
Have your say on this article