Dell Computer in this year's third quarter for the first time shipped more PCs in the US than rival Compaq Computer, as worldwide PC shipments increased by about 25 percent over the same period last year, according to data released yesterday.
The direct PC seller increased its share of US shipments to 17.1 percent, ahead of Compaq's 15.3 percent, according to preliminary estimates announced yesterday by GartnerGroup's Dataquest market research unit.
Worldwide, PC shipment growth was fuelled by a combination of factors, including lower prices, economic prosperity, the Internet and latent demand in the Asia-Pacific region, Dataquest said in a statement.
Total US PC shipments during the quarter increased by 22.7 percent, reaching nearly 11.7 million units, as compared to 9.5 million units in last year's third quarter, according to Dataquest. Dell and Compaq were followed by Gateway, Hewlett-Packard and IBM, Dataquest said.
Rival market research company IDC) eported the same rankings, but based on slightly different numbers. Total US shipments grew by 23.2 percent to just over 11.7 million units, IDC said.
Worldwide, Compaq remained the No. 1 PC vendor, followed by Dell, IBM, HP and Gateway, according to Dataquest. IDC, however, placed NEC (including its US subsidiary Packard Bell NEC) in fifth place, ahead of Gateway.
Total global PC shipments during the third quarter increased by 23.2 percent, from nearly 23.2 million units in the same period a year ago to almost 28.6 million units, according to Dataquest, while IDC pegged growth at 25 percent and shipments in this year's third quarter at 27.9 million units.