Gartner Predicts PC Revival in 2015: Report
Market research firm Gartner says that Microsoft's Windows operating system (OS) will play a key role in reviving the struggling PC market in 2015. According to Gartner, Microsoft's termination of security support for Windows XP will be the key factor in that revival.
There's no denying that the PC industry has been in a downward spiral for several years now. Back in April, one of Gartner's competitors, IDC, reported that quarterly PC shipments had fallen 4.4 per cent to 73.4 million.
Businesses to Finally Ditch Windows XP, Gartner Predicts
But Gartner says it now sees a light at the end of the tunnel. The firm predicts that PC shipments could reach 317 million in 2015, a slight and notable increase from 308 million units this year. Gartner says this revival will be driven by many businesses fleeing their Windows XP computers in favor of Windows 7 or Windows 8 machines. Several months ago Microsoft terminated support for Windows XP, which is now more than a decade old and poses major security risks.
That said, it's unclear how news of a new version of Windows 9 (code-named "Threshold") will impact enterprise adoption of Windows 7 and Windows 8. It's possible that news could lead businesses to hold off on upgrading to Windows 8, which many consider to be an unfriendly desktop environment. (Source: pcworld.com)
Tablet Shipments to Surpass PC Shipments in 2015
But Gartner doesn't see a slight surge in PC shipments negatively affecting a growing tablet computer market. In fact, the research firm is projecting tablet shipments to grow to 256 million units this year, up from 207 million in 2013.
Gartner adds that tablet shipments should reach 321 million shipments in 2015. In other words, tablet shipments are expected to surpass PC shipments next year. Gartner researcher Ranjit Atwal suggests that declining tablet prices and added functionality will help the surge in tablet shipments. (Source: extremetech.com)
Overall, Gartner says that shipments of computing devices -- including PCs, tablets, and smartphones -- will increase by 4.2 per cent this year, jumping to 2.4 billion units. But the forecast for 2015 is even brighter, with shipments expected to reach 2.6 billion units.
What's Your Opinion?
Do you believe that Microsoft's termination of support for Windows XP will finally push businesses to adopt Windows 7 or Windows 8? What impact do you think the announcement of "Threshold" (or Windows 9) will have on that decision? Are you surprised that tablet shipments are projected to surpass PC shipments next year?
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Comments
Many Likely to Just Abandon Windows Instead.
Rather than purchase new W8 PCs to replace our older XP units we simply gave them a new lease on life by switching to Linux Mint.
Now running like new & far fewer hassles.
Is that pronounced...
W8 - "wait"?
Win9
It's not uncommon for businesses to wait for the next budget year for migrations. I'm surprised Win9 didn't play a larger role in their comments - perhaps as it's an unknown as yet. But I know many put off migration because Win8 was seen as poor for the desktop.
The language is amusing when they call a 4% drop a "downward spiral".
The article also doesn't note that the majority of tablets run Android (a version of Linux), not Windows. So tablet sales will have a much smaller impact on Microsoft than PC sales.
Microsoft has lost a massive market share on devices, but its not been a migration to Linux on the desktop. Thats still behind Macs which are in the single digits. It's in the migration to mobile devices.
Gartner
I due tech support for five corporate type clients and they passed on Win 8 because it was not compatible with their desktops and would require new equipment and employee training way beyond a simple improvement to a Win 7 setup. If Win 9 allows a desktop experience such as Win 7 they all plan to move up to acquire better security provided by a new kernel.
No matter what OS is used, Linux, MAC based, etc. if enough people are using it the hackers will make life very difficult for that system. Windows is simply a victim of success. Win 8 is more secure than Win 7 or anything before and Win 9 will probably be another step forward in improving security.
Gartner
I tend to agree with Pershon. the prime function of a business is to make a profit. the least difficult way to make a profit is to keep costs under control. the best way to keep costs under control is to use equipment as long as possible. therefore, most businesses will use their XP equipment until it dies or until they are FORCED to upgrade. if that happens at the end of 2014, it is most likely that those businesses will upgrade to WIN 9 and the machines that run it. business is not like the consumer market that runs out to purchase "the latest" gadget. Gartner is probably correct in their assessment of the PC market in 2015/2016. there will be no real change in the number of "currently being used" desktop PCs, nor will there be a vast exchange of desktops for tablets. all the fan-boys need to remember that the equipment is purchased for a specific job and those machines are NOT always inter-changeable.