Worldwide PC shipments totaled 62.7 million units in the first quarter of 2007, a 8.9 percent increase from the same period last year, according to preliminary results by Gartner, Inc. The worldwide total is in line with Gartner’s earlier projections; however the geographic regions showed mixed results. The United States, Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA), and Latin America regions performed better than Gartner’s forecast while Asia/Pacific and Japan shipments were lower than expected. The Asia/Pacific region surpassed the U.S. PC market to take the No. 2 position in terms of shipments for the first time. Microsoft’s official consumer launch...