Mac Shipments Declined Significantly in 1Q23, iPad Shipments Increased [Report]

Apple saw a significant decline in Mac shipments during the first quarter of 2023; however, the company grew iPad shipments to reach 50% market share in the United States during the same quarter, according to a new report from Canalys.

PC shipments for 1Q23 were down 28% year-over-year in the USA to just 14.0 million units, but Apple's Mac shipments were hit particularly hard. The company purportedly saw a 38.5% decline in shipments, the biggest drop of all top five manufacturers. Apple captured 12.2% of the market for the quarter, behind Dell at 27.1%, HP at 26.6%, and Lenovo at 15.1%.

"A confluence of factors led to the US PC market bottoming out at the start of 2023," said Ishan Dutt, Principal Analyst at Canalys. "The expected seasonal drop after the holidays coincided with the channel finalizing its inventory correction, resulting in muted sell-in of PCs. On the commercial front, businesses continue to grapple with economic pressures, including three further interest rate hikes since the start of the year. Budget-conscious organizations have extended the life cycle of their existing PCs, with many opting only for critical upgrades."




Notably, Apple performed much better in the tablet market with iPad seeing a solid 20.5% increase in shipments year over year. iPad dominated the competition with 50% market share in 1Q23, followed by Amazon at 18.9%, Samsung at 16.3%, TCL at 5.6%, and Microsoft at 3.5%. Overall, the tablet market posted a decline of 6.8% in shipments for the first quarter.

Despite the poor quarter, Canalys anticipates a market recovery on the horizon. US PC shipments in Q4 2023 are expected to grow 6% year-on-year while full-year shipments in 2024 are forecasted to be 13% higher than in 2023.

"There are already positive signs for the industry," added Dutt. "Inflation has dropped below 5% early in Q2 2023, and there are signals that monetary policy will not tighten further. Business sentiment is improving and commercial demand for PCs is set to re-emerge in the second half of the year. Vendors have reported that end-user device activations rates are relatively strong, which bodes well for shipment volumes once the tail-end of elevated inventories has been worked through. There will be a boost from the education sector during the back-to-school season, mostly benefiting Chromebooks. As we move toward 2024, the transition away from Windows 10 will also become a significant factor for device refreshes. As of Q1 2023, most US channel partners surveyed by Canalys reported that Windows 11 has not yet been a major driver of PC sales. Vendors with broad product portfolios, strong channel management and healthy levels of supply will be well positioned to take advantage of the resurgence in demand."


More details in the full report linked below...

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