All In One PCs Set To Double

Sales of all-in-one desktops will revive in the global PC market in 2010, with shipments set to double, market researcher IDC has forecast.

“We’re expecting consumer and commercial PC buyers alike to be more experimental with new types of PCs, especially because of their lower price points,” said analyst Bob O’Donnell in IDC’s annual review of PC trends.

“Hardware vendors and software developers should seize the opportunity to promote differentiation by rewriting the computing experience to match the new variety of PC sub-form factors arriving in the market.”

IDC’s predictions for the PC industry in 2010 include:

­ Share of all-in-one desktops will double. Continued interest from consumers, combined with new momentum in the commercial sector, will help the all-in-ones capture nearly 10 percent of the worldwide desktop market in 2010.

­ Ultrathin portables will be under 5 percent of portable PC shipments. The market’s focus on ultrathins will continue to grow in 2010, but the “value equation” for many consumers is still not compelling enough to drive significant growth.

­ Netbook shipment growth will drastically slow and plateau, due to lack of differentiation and declining prices for other portable PCs.

 ­ Average selling price (ASP) declines will slow dramatically. Stronger market demand from both the commercial and consumer markets should translate into solid shipment growth ­ and better prices.

­  Shipments of portable PCs with WiMax embedded will surpass shipments of portable PCs with embedded 3G.

­ Apple’s launch of the iPad will not spur increased sales of Windows-based tablet PCs.