Global notebook shipment growth probably won’t top 15% year-on-year and is, in fact, expected to reach only 12% since buyers from the enterprise market are increasingly fond of tablets such as the iPad and are considering replacing their existing notebooks with such a device instead of a new notebook, according to Joanne Chie, senior analyst at Digitimes Research (http://www.digitimes.com).
As more tablet computers begin showing up in the second half of 2011, their sales impact on the notebook industry will only expand further. This will most likely cause global netbook shipments in 2011 to reach only 24.23 million units, while forcing the notebook industry to enter the initial phase of maturity, Chien adds.
