Low-End Laptop Processors See Declining Demand Amid Pandemic | Worst quarterly slowdown yet
Low-end laptop processors saw the worst drop in quarterly shipments during the pandemic.
Mercury Research noted that the third quarter of the year resulted in the unexpected decrease in the number of said computer hardware. The delivery target has plunged to over 18 million units from the second quarter of 2021.
Lower-end laptop processors hit by worst downturn
(Photo: Brooke Cagle of Unsplash)
According to the recent report, the demand for low-end laptop processors continues to decline this year. Learn more about this report and find out what the research company has to say about it.
According to a PC Mag report on Friday, November 5, processors for budget laptops have suffered from an exhausting drop in demand, especially AMD Athlon and Intel Celeron chips.
Mercury Research, a leading data company for PC processor information, wrote that the second quarter saw a decline of more than 50%.
For Dean McCarron, president of the Romanian research firm, this is the “worst quarterly slowdown” in the history of the computer hardware market.
In an email interview with PC Mag, McCarron said the current semiconductor crisis and the drop in demand for low-end processors were unrelated. In addition, he rather blamed the downward trend in demand for basic laptops, including the Google Chromebook.
As the COVID-19 pandemic eases, many people still depend on home jobs and schoolwork. Last year, sales of laptops started to increase, causing demand to increase as well.
Read also: Intel ‘silently’ launches new 5G M.2 module for laptops: faster processors reach up to 5 GHz
According to McCarron of Mercury Research, with the gradual mitigation of the pandemic, demand for processors would also be affected. So almost all IT hardware in different industries will quickly feel the impact on shipments.
From the fourth quarter of 2020 to the second quarter of 2021, the data company recorded annual growth of more than 180%.
“Some setback was expected, but the return to pre-COVID volumes was instantaneous rather than gradual,” McCarron said.
Besides the independent Romanian company, Canalys observed the same event where demand for Chromebooks has suddenly plunged lately.
Along with this, users should expect an increase in the price of processors available in the market. Based on statistics from Mercury Research, starting at $ 151, the average selling price could now reach $ 168.
Qualcomm sees better supply this year
In another CNBC report, Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon said the company would “significantly better” manage its supply issues before the end of the year.
The semiconductor giant also said it will meet demand for the second half of 2022. Following this report, the company’s stock climbed more than 12% on Thursday, November 4.
Despite ongoing chip issues, Qualcomm remains optimistic about its plans in the face of competition from large companies such as Apple.
RAM price increase
Tech Times reported in April that the surprising increase in dynamic random access memory (DRAM) prices was not just due to the global shortage of chips. Besides the supply issue, GPU production was also affected in the process.
Elsewhere, a truck heist in California saw numerous EVGA graphics cards stolen by an unidentified thief. The company warned customers not to purchase the hijacked hardware because it knew all of the serial numbers for the affected chips.
Associated article: Global chip shortage will persist until 2023 – PC demands are expected to ‘soften slightly’ over the next few years
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Written by Joseph Henry
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