Apple CEO Tim Cook can talk all he wants about the post-PC era, we're not buying it. Neither is International Data Corporation (IDC), which today said it expects worldwide PC shipments to pick up steam as the year goes on and have a strong second half of 2012. The first half of the year will only see "modest growth," but between the launch of Windows 8 and excitement generated by Ultrabooks and other ultra-thin notebooks, IDC expects second half sales to be much stronger.
This will be in stark contrast to 2011, in which PC vendors faced a "tenuous economic recovery" and went toe-to-toe with "emerging computing devices," which we take to mean tablets. PC shipments in mature markets like the U.S. and Europe declined 9 percent in 2011 compared to 2010, IDC says.
In 2012, IDC expects PC growth to be 5 percent for the year, most of which will take place in the second half of the year.
"Many consumers are holding off making PC purchases at the moment because tablet devices like Apple's iPad are proving to be a powerful distraction," according to Bob O'Donnell, vice president of Clients and Displays at IDC. "However, end user surveys tell us that few people consider media tablets as replacements for their PCs, so later this year when there is a new Microsoft operating system, available in sleek new PC form factors, we believe consumer interest in PCs will begin to rebound."
Bolded by us for emphasis because it's refreshing to hear someone else say what we've been preaching from the beginning.
