With Apple’s (AAPL) iPad still categorized in different ways — maybe a personal computer, maybe a new kind of category unto itself — it was only a matter of time before some industry observers would start to factor the device into their overall personal computer market numbers.
Today, DisplaySearch, part of research firm NPD, announced Apple’s shipments of worldwide mobile PCs topped those of Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) when including tablet shipments in Q4. Apple shipped a combined 10.2 million notebook computers and tablets in Q4, for 17% share, beating out HP’s 9.3 million units, or 15.6% share.
DisplaySearch analyst Richard Shim remarks, “Apple’s iPad business is complementing a notebook line whose shipments widely exceed the industry average growth rate.” Total mobile PC shipments in Q4 were 59.6 million, the firm reports.
Apple shares are up $2.85, or 0.8%, at $362.74.
Update: I should note that a piece by Yenting Chen, Yen-Shyang Hwang, and Joseph Tsai in DigiTimes this morning projects a strong Q1 for Apple’s notebook computer shipments, given that the company is not impacted by the defect found by Intel (INTC) in its companion chipset to the Sandy Bridge processor, which has delayed some PC shipments by various vendors. The article cites anonymous retail vendor sources.
Update 2: A note from MacTrast’s J. Glenn Kunzler this morning states that Apple is expected to use a special metal alloy made by Liquidmetal Technologies (LQMT) to design its next MacBook laptops in such a way as to make them 20% lighter than existing models. The article cites an anonymous source who claims to be “an insider in the manufacturing process of the upcoming MacBook and MacBook Pro.” A story by Apple Insider today claims that Apple’s next MacBook refresh is expected in “early March.” The rumor has helped push up Liquidmetal shares by 13 cents, or 20%, to 76 cents.
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