- However, the segment underwent a 22% decline year on year in Q4 2022, thanks to a major fall in notebook shipments
- For the current Indian PC market, fears of recession and inflation are the major concerns
The latest report by Canalys noted that the Indian PC market (desktops, notebooks and tablets) suffered a significant fall of 22% year on year, with 4.1 million units shipped in Q4 2022. On the upside, 2022 proved to be a good year for the market, as the shipments went up by 5% year on year.
The report mentioned that “a steep fall” in notebook shipments was the main factor for a 22% fall this quarter. Notably, notebook shipments were down 31% to 2.3 million units. On the other hand, desktop shipments fell by 5% to 695,000 units and tablets by 7% to reach 1.2 million units.
For the full year, desktops and tablets played a major role by increasing by 37% and 21% to 3.2 million and 5.4 million units respectively. Though, notebook shipments again fell 7% to 11 million units in 2022.
Talking of brands in the PC market, while HP stood at the first spot, Lenovo took second place but suffered a large shipment decline of 31% in Q4. Dell and Acer followed respectively, while Apple managed to secure the fifth spot in Q4 2022, overtaking Asus.
Among brands in the Indian tablet market, Apple led in Q4 2022 with the launch of its new iPad. Samsung dropped to the second position, though it witnessed a 12% year-on-year growth in the quarter. Lava, Acer and Lenovo followed respectively.
Analyst Ashweej Aithal remarked, “Indian consumers spent on devices in the first half of 2022, but demand quickly tailed off, leading to a weak holiday season for vendors and retailers. Meanwhile, the commercial sector continued to struggle with inventory and supply chain issues, but the fall in demand is helping to lessen procurement delays. Pockets of enterprise spending in the aftermath of last year’s lockdowns have helped desktops maintain some momentum, while education deals have buoyed tablet shipments.”
As per the estimates suggested by the report, PC and tablet shipments in India will fall by 6% in 2023, to 18 million units. However, this figure is better as compared to the global scenario, which is expected to contract by 9%. The study betted on the country’s GDP to fight the shadow cast by the weak global economy this year.
According to Aithal, education will be an important segment for PCs and tablets in India this year and beyond. “With the full list of tenders the government has offered, the tablet industry has enormous potential. Bridging the digital divide to provide wider education access is a key public sector goal, with investment expected to ramp up at all levels over the next few years. Meanwhile, enterprise deals that are on hold due to current economic conditions are set to re-emerge and boost the market recovery in 2024.”
Aithal further added, “One emerging development to look out for is the rise of locally manufactured, Android-powered notebooks, such as Reliance’s JioBook and the new Primebook 4G. Despite very competitive price points, these devices have so far not gained major traction, mostly due to their basic specifications and issues around the OS experience on a PC. But with quality improvements and a stronger go-to-market strategy, they have the potential to offer an alternative option for education deployments and to draw in first-time PC users.”
Canalys is an independent analyst company which delivers smart market insights to IT, channel and service provider professionals around the world.
