Win8 can't save the decline in sales in the shopping season.

Computer store news:

According to the US market research company IDC statistics, due to Microsoft
Windows 8
The system failed to attract consumers, and many users switched to smartphones and tablets, resulting in the first decline in global PC sales in the shopping season in five years.
This bad data ended the tragic year of the PC industry. For the first time in more than a decade, PC giants such as Hewlett-Packard, Lenovo and Dell have witnessed an annual decline in the industry, and there is no sign of any mitigation in the short term.

The PC industry has experienced a tragic year

This also highlights the mediocre performance of the latest generation of Microsoft Windows operating systems. Microsoft is counting on this system to fight against the PC market by touch devices such as the Apple iPad.

& ldquo; I feel that the PC market will remain in this unfavorable state until Windows 8 is fully popular and prices begin to decline. ” US investment bank Stifel, Nicolaus & Co analyst Allen · Aaron Rakers said.

However, analysts also warned that don't underestimate the potential of Win8. Despite Microsoft's most complete revision of the Windows system in 20 years, consumers have gradually adapted to the latest tile interface.

IDC said that this happened before: Microsoft's new system was expected to increase PC sales, but PC makers failed to launch attractive products in time. Jay Chou, an analyst at the company, said: “Because of being addicted to promoting touch PCs, major vendors have not paid much attention to other features and have failed to promote a more secure, reliable and efficient user interface. & rdquo;

The situation may be better this year

He believes that this year's situation may improve, despite industry predictions, when the tablet is about to surpass the full-featured traditional PC in the US market for the first time, the PC is dead. Approaching.

 With the maturity of Win8
and other factors, such as the price of Ultrabook, the price and demand of the PC market are expected to recover in 2013. & rdquo; Jay · Zhou said.

Global PC sales in the fourth quarter of last year were only 89.8 million units, down 6.4% year-on-year. This result is lower than most people's expectations, and the worst record in more than five years — — five years ago, the global PC market is suffering from the biggest financial crisis since World War II.

Global PC sales for the full year of 2012 were 352 million units, a decrease of 3.2% from 2011. According to IDC data, this is the first annual decline since 2001 — — at that time the market was doubled by the tech stock crash and the September 11 terrorist attacks.

IDC expects PC sales in 2013 to increase slightly by 2.8%.

& ldquo; There are still some convincing reasons for upgrading. & rdquo; Market research for the company Maxim Group analyst Ashok · Ashok Kumar said. He said that users may now wait up to 10 years to upgrade their computers, which was only about five years ago.

& ldquo; Performance improvements have decreased, and new applications that require more computing power have been reduced. “In the developing market, people’s preferred devices are no longer PCs, but smartphones, especially in markets with lower levels of education,” he said. & rdquo;

CES lacks highlights

This data is a big negative for Microsoft, the company's share of the global PC market is still 90%, but it faces iPad and other tablet pairs The low-end PC market is eating away.

Windows 8 for touch screen optimization and Microsoft's own Surface tablet are designed to reverse this trend, but the new interface has not yet won consumers' favor.

 Windows 8 does not have much catalysis. ” US investment bank Sterne Agee analyst Shaw · Wu (Shaw Wu) said, "It's too big change, even makes people feel uncomfortable, Windows 8 may encounter a fate like Vista.  quo;

Vista, released in 2007, is Microsoft's most unpopular system in recent years.

Microsoft has withdrawn from the Las Vegas International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) this year, but PC makers such as Asus, LG and Samsung are still launching a variety of large-screen computers, light notebooks, tablets and hybrids. And they are all equipped with Windows 8 system.

A lot of new products have attracted a lot of people to watch, such as Panasonic's 20-inch ultra-high-definition tablet and Razer's game-specific Edge tablet. But no product is enough to attract long-lasting applause, and it is impossible to reverse the fate of Windows by itself.

“No device can drive sales, and consumers need some time to realize the existence of Windows 8. CES did not bring much improvement. Regardless of the quality of the hardware, Windows 8 will be slow. "Market research firm Forrester analyst Sarah · Rutman · Sarah Rotman Epps said.

Microsoft's optimism is not recognized

Microsoft said that the current progress of Windows 8 feels good, the system has sold more than 60 million copies this week for 10 weeks. This is the same as when Windows 7 went public three years ago, but it is much higher than Vista, which sold 40 million copies in 100 days.

Microsoft's Windows division CFO Tami · Tami Reller said that the lack of the most popular touch-screen devices may hinder sales of Windows 8 PCs. “I think the level of demand has surprised many people. To be honest, the supply is too little. ” Lehrer said at CES this week.

Microsoft hopes to further stimulate demand with this month's Surface with Windows 8 Pro system, which will be powered by Intel processors and fully compatible with Office and traditional PC software. The Surface with ARM processor introduced last year does not have these features.

Although Microsoft continues to release optimistic information, analysts are not optimistic about the company's earnings prospects. Morgan Stanley analyst Adam · Adam Holt downgraded the stock from "to increase" on Thursday to "holding a wait-and-see", he said: "Windows 8 disappointing The PC market will remain weak in the short term and the profit margin may be under pressure. ”

Investors are also confused, resulting in Microsoft's share price has fallen nearly 20% since March last year. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index hit a five-year high this week. Since the release of Windows 8 on October 26 last year, the stock has fallen by 6%.