Notebook manufacturers are always fighting it out for global supremacy,
measured in the number of computers sold and shipped around the world. Market
research firm DisplaySearch routinely ranks the companies according to the number
of notebooks shipped.
DisplaySearch released
a new report this week that shows some interesting information. While HP
maintained its worldwide market dominance of the notebook PC industry holding on to its
number one spot for the sixth straight quarter, Acer is making huge gains on
the list. Acer overtook Dell as the number two notebook maker in the world.
HP moved more than 6 million notebook computers in Q4 2007 while Acer showed
big gains shipping 5.25 million notebooks worldwide leaving it about 1.4
million units behind number one HP. Dell ranked third with shipments of 4.64
million units.
Acer’s acquisitions of rival PC makers Gateway
and Packard
Bell enabled it to beat Dell out of the second place spot on the
DisplaySearch list. However, DisplaySearch points out that Acer was able to
dramatically narrow the gap between it and Dell with Acer branded notebooks
alone.
Fourth place on the list goes to Toshiba with 2.86 million notebooks shipped
in Q4 2007. Fifth place went to Lenovo with 2.73 million and Fujitsu captured
sixth place with 1.62 million shipped. Sony, Asus and Apple rounded out the
list with 1.59 million, 1.56 million and 1.34 million unit shipped
respectively. All other PC makers not listed by name in the report account for
5.55 million units shipped.
Some other interesting facts from the report were that the most popular size
notebook was the 15.4-inch with 1280 x 800 resolution. In a distant second
place were notebooks with 14.1-inch screens.