Choices have to be taken in a tech world currently hampered by component shortages In the laptop market, Windows-based machines are preferred over Chrome OS-based machines.
An early version of IDC’s newest Worldwide Quarterly Personal Computing Device Tracker was made public on Monday. In Q4 2021, shipments to distribution channels or end users decreased by 63.6 percent to 4.8 million units, compared to 13.1 million units in Q4 2020, as shown by the tracker.
Even while demand for Chromebooks continues to outpace the supply of key components like CPUs and integrated circuits for Wi-Fi modules and power management, Chromebook shipments continue to decline.
“Supply has been unusually tight for Chromebooks as component shortages have led vendors to prioritise Windows machines due to their higher price tags, further suppressing Chromebook shipments on a global scale,” Jitesh Ubrani, research manager with IDC’s Mobility and Consumer Device Trackers, said in a statement accompanying Monday’s announcement.
It’s unclear, according to Ubrani, if Windows 10- or Windows 11-based workstations will take precedence over Chrome OS-based ones, but IDC doesn’t know for sure. The release of Windows 11 in 2021 will provide PC manufacturers with an opportunity to update their product lines with “Windows 11-ready” models.
Windows 11 is likely to have had a reduced influence on PC sales because of the limited supply of PCs.
This time around, demand and supply are already high enough that consumers aren’t basing their purchase on OS version, as they have in the past, according to Ubrani, speaking to Ars Technica. Chrome OS and the PC market as a whole haven’t been affected by Windows 11 in particular, according to the company.
Additionally, Ubrani cited market saturation in the United States and Europe (which were particularly eager for Chromebooks as remote study and work increased) as a factor in slowing global Chromebook sales growth. Chromebook demand in emerging nations has grown steadily over the past year, according to Ubrani.
In 2021, 4.4 million more Chromebooks were sold than in 2020, making them more popular. Chromebook sales for Lenovo increased from 6.7 million in 2020 to 8.3 million in 2021, the most significant increase in the industry.