[QUOTE]Windows 10 might be pretty popular, but it wasn't popular enough to rescue the PC business. IDC estimates that computer shipments actually fell 10.6 percent in the fourth quarter of 2015, making it the steepest year-over-year drop in history. In fact, shipments were scarcely any better than they were in the summer, when sales are supposed to be slower. Gartner's figures are slightly better, although the 8.3 percent drop is nothing to write home about.
Many of the familiar brands led the pack, although their shipments weren't exactly heartening. Outside of Apple, most PC makers took a tumble this fall. US sales were kinder to ASUS and Lenovo, but not by a whole lot. And the whole-year figures are pretty sobering -- IDC believes shipments fell 10.4 percent in 2015, while Gartner has them down 8 percent.
Why the plummeting numbers? The analyst groups peg it on a combination of PC buyers' behavior and Microsoft's strategy. As we've seen in the past, PC upgrade cycles are getting longer -- that old PC is more likely to be good enough for another year, especially in a world where smartphones and tablets still reduce the need for a beefy computer. And IDC notes that the free Windows 10 upgrades may have hurt PC vendors. When you don't have to pay to get a new version of Windows, why not use the PC you already have?
Whatever the cause, PC makers don't have a lot to look forward to in 2016. They were banking on a slew of new Windows 10 PCs turning things around this fall, and that clearly wasn't enough.[/QUOTE]
[url]http://www.engadget.com/2016/01/12/pc-shipment-drop-is-worst-ever/[/url]
shouldn't be surprising to anyone, desktop PCs as we know them are a mature market. With activities most people do on their computer being office work, watching videos, and surfing the web, there is little need to upgrade to more powerful hardware if you have a 4-5 year old machine at this point that works for you. Combine that with windows 10 being offered for free, and most people now have no reason to buy a "new" computer to get an upgraded experience. Also, more consumers are sticking to mobile devices for their media needs than ever.
The sales will continue to drop I imagine until they get to some sort of (lower) sustaining level.
Only real thing to note about the report is it only accounts for OEM machines, so the "gaming PC" custom market doesn't really factor into it. I'm not sure there is a good estimate on how many of those are assembled and can be counted as new machines in a given year.
forget that you had a pc manufacturer lenovo shipped malware on their machines.
saw someone also make a point that people are waiting for better tech like from nividia and amd.
finally there should a poll asking several different things, like "do you make enough income to buy a new pc"
I imagine consumers are also getting wiser to the fact that they don't need an i7 and 3GB vid card for regular home use
[QUOTE=Ithon;49541630]forget that you had a pc manufacturer lenovo shipped malware on their machines.
saw someone also make a point that people are waiting for better tech like from nividia and amd.
finally there should a poll asking several different things, like "do you make enough income to buy a new pc"[/QUOTE]
Considering shit like Lenovo does (they did it TWICE, no less) happens at all is reason enough for someone to avoid a PC
not to say this doesn't exist as an issue with other devices, I don't believe that knowledge is as publicly known.
I also don't trust a lot of laptops any more. I don't believe the ones within the normal student price range are developed with longevity in mind, and a lot of my friends and family experience the same problems. That, alongside gimmicks aren't going to help.
[QUOTE=Maloof?;49541631]I imagine consumers are also getting wiser to the fact that they don't need an i7 and [B]3GB vid card[/B] for regular home use[/QUOTE]
more like any video card at all. Ever since integrated graphics became a thing a discrete graphics card became unnecessary.
[QUOTE=The Baconator;49541662]more like any video card at all. Ever since integrated graphics became a thing a discrete graphics card became unnecessary.[/QUOTE]
Integrated graphics sucked ass for a very long time. I remember I couldn't really watch YouTube videos in HD on many computers when that first became a thing.
However, in the last generation or so, they've been getting better by leaps and bounds. They're more than adequate for a non-gaming non-editing user.
[QUOTE=Dr. Evilcop;49541766]Integrated graphics sucked ass for a very long time. I remember I couldn't really watch YouTube videos in HD on many computers when that first became a thing.
However, in the last generation or so, they've been getting better by leaps and bounds. They're more than adequate for a non-gaming non-editing user.[/QUOTE]
Not like you can't game on one either.
[video=youtube;Gn0xnxe4bZ4]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gn0xnxe4bZ4[/video]
[video=youtube;l9cPn-jDjd0]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l9cPn-jDjd0[/video]
[QUOTE=JohnnyOnFlame;49541782]Not like you can't game on one either.[/QUOTE]
yeah they'll sorta cut it for some games, but anyone in their right mind who is serious about gaming will get a dedicated card regardless
Well, that's completely normal, as many people already have a computer and don't see a need to replace it every few years like gamers or some other people do.
What this leaves out is the amount of self-built computers, which seems to be getting bigger and bigger.
Asus alone sold over 5.5 million mainboards in just one quarter and that's just one mainboard manufacturer.
[URL="http://www.maximumpc.com/asus-sees-rise-do-it-yourself-motherboard-sales-2014/"]www.maximumpc.com/asus-sees-rise-do-it-yourself-motherboard-sales-2014/[/URL]
I'm still on a Core 2 duo 2.4GHz and 460GTX so they will get me this year.
[editline]16th January 2016[/editline]
Actually I'm surprised my motherboard didn't bust an capacitor yet. Ok my LAN doesn't work because one exploded but that's about it.
I've got a 5 year old computer and it still runs every game I want to play without a hiccup. That might change soon as the new console generation starts to mature but for now there's just no reason to upgrade. especially now that half of the most popular new games are lo-fi ~indie~ titles like punch club that can run on a toaster and not like 2008-ish where we had things like crysis and gta 4 which could barely run on top of the line equipment of the time
Computer parts manufacturers will see a spike in sales when more VR hardware becomes available.
I know I have to get a significant upgrade to my computer to make it VR-ready. I will need a new mobo, CPU, GPU and PSU. This upgrade will cost me as much as it cost to build it like 5 years ago.
[QUOTE=wauterboi;49541651]I also don't trust a lot of laptops any more. I don't believe the ones within the normal student price range are developed with longevity in mind, and a lot of my friends and family experience the same problems. That, alongside gimmicks aren't going to help.[/QUOTE]
Dude I just forked $1200 on a Lenovo Yoga 2 Pro, just to find out it's riddled with spyware and is pretty shit with built quality
We need razor to save the PC industry again :smug:
Tablet and laptop systems are taking over (former more than the latter) and a lot of people are figuring out that it's cheaper to build your own system than screw around getting ripped off (plus all the unnecessary bloatware shit) by manufacturers.
2 of my friends who had had never used their PC as a gaming platform and another one that was into PC gaming all bought gaming laptops last year as their upgrade, I on the other hand just invested my money into a desk PC with the best hardware I could afford
The end result is that they can run games on the highest settings but they're lucky to maintain a solid 30-40 FPS whereas with my comp it takes a really unoptimised game like Attila Total War to break it down from 50-60. Yeah, its playable, but if you want the ideal experience with a smooth FPS you're probably either investing in a ridiculously expensive laptop an order of magnitude more expensive than an equivalent desk PC or just better off buying a desk PC
[QUOTE=UnknownDude;49542193]Computer parts manufacturers will see a spike in sales when more VR hardware becomes available.
I know I have to get a significant upgrade to my computer to make it VR-ready. I will need a new mobo, CPU, GPU and PSU. This upgrade will cost me as much as it cost to build it like 5 years ago.[/QUOTE]
That's pretty much what I'm looking forward to when upgrading.
[QUOTE=Killuah;49542112]I'm still on a Core 2 duo 2.4GHz and 460GTX so they will get me this year.
[editline]16th January 2016[/editline]
Actually I'm surprised my motherboard didn't bust an capacitor yet. Ok my LAN doesn't work because one exploded but that's about it.[/QUOTE]
9600gt and a 3.00ghz
I really should upgrade
Actually no I need to get a life
A sad life
With no games
[QUOTE=nintenman1;49541628]shouldn't be surprising to anyone, desktop PCs as we know them are a mature market. With activities most people do on their computer being office work, watching videos, and surfing the web, there is little need to upgrade to more powerful hardware if you have a 4-5 year old machine at this point that works for you. Combine that with windows 10 being offered for free, and most people now have no reason to buy a "new" computer to get an upgraded experience. Also, more consumers are sticking to mobile devices for their media needs than ever.
The sales will continue to drop I imagine until they get to some sort of (lower) sustaining level.
Only real thing to note about the report is it only accounts for OEM machines, so the "gaming PC" custom market doesn't really factor into it. I'm not sure there is a good estimate on how many of those are assembled and can be counted as new machines in a given year.[/QUOTE]
Heck, I have a 6 year old hardwared machine and still it works good for all my needs. Modern games lag, but all important games do not.
It will jump back, it always does.
Further, with VR coming soon, it is bound to attract a bunch of people who want to experience it and would either upgrade or buy a prebuilt for the sake of simplicity.
[QUOTE=Tools;49542201]Dude I just forked $1200 on a Lenovo Yoga 2 Pro, just to find out it's riddled with spyware and is pretty shit with built quality
We need razor to save the PC industry again :smug:[/QUOTE]
The Razer laptops are actually supposedly pretty nice. Though I don't think I would get one just because it has the Razer logo on it.
My sister wanted to buy a laptop, and she already has a smartphone and a tablet. So I asked her: "Why do you need a laptop then ? What would you do with it that you can't do with your tablet, or a smartphone?" Since she only uses them to browse the web, of course she couldn't find an answer.
Most websites still run like complete shit on mobile devices, even worse on their own "mobile" versions.
[QUOTE=Rika-chan;49543261]The Razer laptops are actually supposedly pretty nice. Though I don't think I would get one just because it has the Razer logo on it.[/QUOTE]
I got a new Asus laptop for $1000 that's running Fallout 4 on the highest settings at 40-60 fps at 1920x1080. I don't really know what the hitch is with this laptop because it seems inexpensive for the hardware it has.
When it comes to laptops Dell has been getting better, at least with their business laptops. XPS 13 is also pretty neat, I didn't even have to reinstall windows because the bloatware was so minimal. And the cheap ones are pretty gimmick-free. Though I did end up installing archlinux anyways.
When getting a laptop though you pretty much want to have at least 700-800$, so much hardware below that price are pieces of trash that are made to die after a year, and are just incapable of doing much. Though it also depends what you're doing, if you want to get some performance out of it and want to actually take it out into the world where it might occasionally get hurt and such then yeah, this applies. If it's just for the web, chromebooks are usually pretty great. Surfaces are too.
I just stopped buying computer parts for a while I don't feel like paying $950 for a 980ti
[QUOTE=wauterboi;49541651]I also don't trust a lot of laptops any more. I don't believe the ones within the normal student price range are developed with longevity in mind, and a lot of my friends and family experience the same problems. That, alongside gimmicks aren't going to help.[/QUOTE]
Well you get what you pay for. Spending at least $1000 for a laptop should get you something that lasts a decent amount of time.
I have a $500 laptop that switches to a tablet (great for youtube watching) and plays all the games I'd want on the surprisingly impressive intel integrated graphics(which have come a very far way from the past); I have little desire to get anything else except perhaps a desktop to play games at max quality but I'm not a graphics nut anyway.
[QUOTE=Map in a box;49544627]I have a $500 laptop that switches to a tablet (great for youtube watching) and plays all the games I'd want on the surprisingly impressive intel integrated graphics(which have come a very far way from the past); I have little desire to get anything else except perhaps a desktop to play games at max quality but I'm not a graphics nut anyway.[/QUOTE]
For Valve Source games, the integrated GPUs these days can handle it pretty well. Anything with fancier graphics will obviously make the performance worse.
I was easily able to get 60fps+ on CS:GO on the Intel Integrated 520 at 1080p, given all of the graphics settings were on low.
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