Researchers say worldwide shipments of personal computers came back strongly in the fourth quarter of 2009. US consumers lured by low prices led the charge.
Analysts at IDC say worldwide PC shipments climbed 15 percent from the prior year. In the US, PC shipments rose a whopping 24 percent.
That's much better than expected. IDC thought global shipments would rise about 11 percent, and just 6 percent in the US. The holiday period of 2008 had been the industry's worst in several years.
Consumers' interest in "netbooks" and other cheap portable computers were responsible for the turnaround. In the fourth quarter, netbooks made up about 20 percent of consumer laptops shipped, IDC says, and computer makers cut regular laptop prices even more.
AP