Inflated numbers: PC sales rise due to "Memflation"
PC and notebook manufacturers are preparing for rising hardware prices. Apple is growing significantly with the MacBook Neo.
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The PC and notebook market grew by four percent in the first quarter of 2026 compared to the same period last year. Market researchers at Gartner arrived at this preliminary result, but noted: The growth “was artificially inflated”.
According to Gartner, the growth is not due to increasing consumer demand but rather to stock replenishment anticipating rising hardware prices. The 62.8 million desktop PCs and notebooks delivered were not sales to end customers; rather, retailers and distributors purchased so many devices from manufacturers.
| Preliminary sales figures for PCs and notebooks (in millions of units, source Gartner) | |||||
| Manufacturer | 1Q26 Shipments | 1Q26 Market Share | 1Q25 Shipments | 1Q25 Market Share | Change |
| Lenovo | 16.645 | 26.5% | 15.199 | 25.2% | 9.5% |
| HP | 12.142 | 19.3% | 12.766 | 21.1% | -4.9% |
| Dell | 10.337 | 16.5% | 9.608 | 15.9% | 7.6% |
| Apple | 6.684 | 10.6% | 5.933 | 9.8% | 12.7% |
| Asus | 4.21 | 6.7% | 3.801 | 6.3% | 10.8% |
| Acer | 4.001 | 6.4% | 3.853 | 6.4% | 3.9% |
| Others | 8.78 | 14.0% | 9.205 | 15.2% | -4.6% |
| Total | 62.8 | 100.0% | 60.365 | 100.0% | 4.0% |
In particular, RAM and SSDs have become significantly pricier recently (“Memflation”); market researchers expect further increases. However, the costs for processors are also expected to rise. Gartner agrees that this particularly affects particularly affordable systems.
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MacBook Neo is well received
Apple is benefiting from this imbalance with the MacBook Neo. According to analysis, the manufacturer is successfully attracting new users with the device who had no prior connection to macOS. This is also working in the education sector. Apple offers students a discount of 100 Euros or US Dollars on the MacBook Neo, bringing the starting price to 599 Euros or 499 US Dollars respectively.
Apple's shipments grew the strongest among the world's largest manufacturers, with 12.7 percent. The company sold almost 6.7 million devices. This increased Apple's market share from 9.8 to 10.6 percent.
Lenovo remains the undisputed world market leader with good 16.6 million sales (+9.5 percent). Among the top 6 named, HP is the only manufacturer that shrank compared to the previous year. Shipments fell by 4.9 percent to just over 12.1 million units.
(mma)
