COVID-19 Boom...This Year’s Laptop Shipments Expected to Reach a Record 236.6 Million Units

[Asia Economy Reporter Joselgina] Due to the impact of COVID-19, global laptop shipments are expected to set a new record this year. Following a 26% growth last year, double-digit growth is also anticipated this year. However, some analyses suggest that demand may slow down starting in the second half of the year.

According to market research firm TrendForce on the 12th (local time), the annual laptop shipment volume for 2021 is estimated at 236.6 million units, a 14.8% increase compared to the previous year.

This is due to the surge in laptop demand worldwide for remote work and online classes amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Last year, when the pandemic fully took hold, growth reached as high as 26.0%. TrendForce stated, "The laptop market growth trend will continue in 2021," adding, "Especially, demand for educational laptops has increased."

The growth of Chromebooks, cloud-based laptops equipped with Google's Chrome operating system (OS), is explosive. Chromebook shipments this year are expected to reach 47 million units, with a year-on-year growth rate of 46.6%. Supported by demand for educational laptops, Chromebooks have established themselves as a growth driver in the market.

Currently, about 70% of global Chromebook demand comes from the United States, and 10% from Japan. However, TrendForce predicts that the U.S. educational laptop market is gradually reaching saturation and that the pandemic is easing following vaccinations, which may cause Chromebook growth to slow down. This is expected to impact Chromebook sales performance for companies such as Acer and Samsung Electronics.

Excluding Chromebooks, the growth rate for other laptops is estimated at 9% this year, following 18.9% last year.

There are also forecasts that overall laptop demand will begin to slow significantly from the fourth quarter. TrendForce anticipates that "consumer demand in Europe and the United States will gradually weaken." Semiconductor component shortages are also expected to have an impact.

Global laptop shipments next year are projected to decrease by 6.21% compared to this year, reaching 221.9 million units.