Increasing demand for learning and entertainment devices is driving growth in PC shipments in New Zealand.

Data from IDC shows the country’s shipments of PC units grew by 24.4 per cent year on year in the third quarter, reaching approximately 228,000 units with Lenovo having the most units shipped. The growth is said to have resulted from increasing demand for education and entertainment due to more students learning from home in the wake of Covid-19 restrictions. 

Shipments of both commercial and consumer PC devices during the third quarter surged by 16.5 per cent and 35.3 per cent year on year, respectively. 

“IDC sees increasing demand in the consumer market driven by greater discretionary spend due to reduced spend on international travel while our borders are effectively closed,” said Liam Landon, associate market analyst at IDC New Zealand.

“Once lockdowns eased, consumer demand began to drive growth in the market. On the other hand, supply remains a key constraint as global demand continues to exceed the availability of PCs”.

Notebook sales rose by 40.2 per cent, outperforming shipments of desktop computers, which declined by 20.3 per cent. 

“IDC saw slight growth in the consumer desktop market due to demand for custom and branded gaming desktops” says Landon. “The same scenario applies for gaming notebooks as people look for more entertainment options while spending more time indoors than in previous years”.

Shipments of PC monitors continued to grow, increasing 41.7 per cent. 

IDC predicts New Zealand’s traditional PC market will reverse its current trend, declining by 6.1 per cent in the next quarter due to “an unfavourable year-on-year comparison”. The commercial market will continue to slow reaching a marginal decline.