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The abacus-shufflers of analyst firm IDC have revised their 2016 PC sales forecasts downwards. The firm now says PC shipments “... are forecast to decline by 7.3% year over year”. That's “roughly two per cent below earlier projections as conditions have been weaker than expected.” The firm names “weak currencies, depressed commodity prices, political uncertainty, and delayed projects” as the weaker conditions impacting sales. Windows 10 isn't helping matters either, because lots of people are availing themselves of free Windows 10 upgrades rather than buying a new PC. The firm also says that “while a large share of enterprises are...

If you can't figure out why CEO Steve Ballmer talks about reinventing Microsoft as a "devices and services company", Jay Chou, IDC senior research analyst, has an answer. "PCs are going through a severe slump". That's being polite in mixed company, when the F-word is so much more appropriate. Third-quarter PC shipments accentuate an already dreadful trend. Analysts expected slowing shipments as the market prepares for Windows 8, but nothing quite like this. The seasonal back-to-school lift collapsed, with even Mac shipments slowing.Global PC shipments fell 8.6 percent year over year, according to IDC, surpassing the minus 3.8 percent...

The disaster in Thailand has caused immense human suffering in the Asian nation, destroyed infrastructure including roads, and triggered major disruptions in industrial production. The tragedy is also expected to have a serious impact on the hard disk drive market. It’s seen as having a much bigger impact on the personal computer industry than the devastating earthquake and tsunami in Japan, Robert W. Baird analyst Jayson Noland said. “This is going to be worse for the PC supply chain for sure,” he said in an interview. “This is a really big deal for the electronics supply chain.” Seagate Chief Executive...

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The number of personal computers worldwide is expected to double to about 1.3 billion by 2010, driven by explosive growth in emerging markets such as China, Russia and India, according to a report released on Tuesday by Forrester Research Inc. China is expected to lead the growth, with 178 million new PC users by 2010, Forrester, a technology research firm, said in a statement. Some 566 million new PCs are expected to be in use in emerging markets by 2010, based on a study of adoption rates across 16 emerging markets, Forrester said in a statement....