“In Q4 2013 the number of computers (Macs, iPhones, iPod Touches and iPads) sold by Apple was larger than the number of Windows PC sold globally,” Benedict Evans reports.
“If you add Windows Phone to the mix they’re more or less exactly equal,” Evans notes. [The Windows PC figures in the chart include Microsoft’s paltry Surface sales. – MDN Ed.]
“Apple limits itself only to the high end of the mobile market,” Evans reports, “but still sells more units than the whole PC industry.”
Brief article in full here.
MacDailyNews Take:
Boom! Steve Jobs told the world exactly what he’d do:
If I were running Apple, I would milk the Macintosh for all it’s worth — and get busy on the next great thing. — Steve Jobs, February 19, 1996
We never doubted him:
As we have always said, even as many short-sightedly waved (and continue to wave) the white flag, the war is not over. And, yes, we shall prevail… No company is invincible. Not even Microsoft. – MacDailyNews Take, January 10, 2005
Apple’s iPad is the first true personal computer for the vast majority of people. The longer IDC et al. ignore this fact, the more out-of-touch they will be perceived. It’s well past time for IDC, Gartner, etc. to begin counting iPads as what they are: Personal computers.
The “PC market” will continue “contracting” for as long as the bean counters insist on not counting all of the beans.
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It’s not rocket science: The things for which the vast majority of people use/used personal computers is easily accomplished with an iPad. PCs are overkill for the vast majority of people, just like an 18-wheeler is vs. a car/SUV. – MacDailyNews Take, January 9, 2013
As usual, Steve knew what would happen:
When we were an agrarian nation, all cars were trucks, because that’s what you needed on the farm. But as vehicles started to be used in the urban centers, cars got more popular. Innovations like automatic transmission and power steering and things that you didn’t care about in a truck as much started to become paramount in cars… PCs are going to be like trucks. They’re still going to be around, they’re still going to have a lot of value, but they’re going to be used by one out of X people. – Steve Jobs, June 1, 2010
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I see cannibalization as a huge opportunity for us. Our core philosophy is to never fear cannibalization. If we don’t do it, someone else will. We know that iPhone has cannibalized some of our iPod business. That doesn’t worry us. We know that iPad will cannibalize some Macs. But that’s not a concern.
On iPad in particular, we have the mother of all opportunities because the Windows market is much, much larger than the Mac market. It is clear that it is already cannibalizing some. I still believe the tablet market will be larger than the PC market at some point. You can see by the growth in tablets and pressure on PCs that those lines are beginning to converge.
If somebody buys an iPad mini or an iPad, if it’s their first Apple product, a percentage of these people wind up buying another type of Apple product. If you remember what we had termed the halo effect for the iPod with the Mac, we’re very confident that will happen with the iPad as well. – Tim Cook, January 23, 2013
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Dan K.” for the heads up.]
Related articles:
Chart shows Apple has beaten Microsoft’s Windows monopoly – January 8, 2014
Steve Jobs’ revenge: Latest PC market forecast projects historic 10% downturn – December 3, 2013