January 30 - 12:35pm EST   Only about a tenth of computer buyers would consider using netbooks as their main systems, ABI Research says in a new study. About 11 percent of Americans asked about the devices say they would use one of the small but low-cost portables as their only or primary computer while majority at 79 percent only consider a netbook a companion device to either a main desktop or regular notebook. The more difficult controls and lower performance are seen as sufficiently high-enough barriers that they preclude many from considering netbooks as more than occasional PCs. [full story]

June 11 - 3:20pm EDT   IDC is projecting worldwide PC shipment growth of 15.2 percent in 2008, reaching 310 million units. The analysis firm predicts that growth will remain in the double-digits through 2010, followed by high single-digit growth through 2012, boosting annual shipments to over 472 million in 2012. Meanwhile, the fall in average PC selling price will be offset by an ongoing transition to sale of notebooks, which generally cost more than desktops. IDC's report also says that the Asia/Pacific region excluding Japan (APeJ) surpassed the United States as the region with the largest PC market in total annual shipments at the end of 2007. [full story]

January 25 - 2:40pm EST   Growth in the mobile phone industry is expected to slow to the single digits going forward from this year, according to market research firm IDC. Last quarter saw a rise in unit sales of 11.6-percent, with the previous holiday quarter fluctuating between 18- and 30-percent. Despite the slowing growth, more than 300 million mobile units were sold during the quarter, which is a record for any quarter, historically. Overall, 1.14 billion phones were sold worldwide, which is 12.4-percent more than the year prior. [full story]

January 2 - 4:10pm EST   This year should represent the first where notebooks overtake desktops in units sold for the US, says new data from research firm IDC. The company notes that sales of portables in in the US climbed by 21 percent last year to 31.6 million systems while desktops dropped by roughly 4 percent, to 35 million. This rate should continue long enough to place notebooks on top sometime this year, IDC notes. The momentum should also lead to a similar change worldwide by 2009 and may lead to notebooks representing more than two thirds of all business (66 percent) and home (71 percent) computer sales just two years later, in 2011. [full story]