Wanna scare a PC maker? Pull out a tablet. It’s become common knowledge that the iPad and other tablet devices are going to eat the PC’s breakfast, but now a lengthy Wall Street report calls tablets “one of the most disruptive forces” for PCs this year. How disruptive? Try 21 million lost notebook sales – just this year.
But what about all of these Android-based tablets appearing? Surely Apple’s iPad can’t dominate for long, right? Apple likely will own 64 percent of the tablet market this year and 74 percent if the Android alternatives disappoint. “We believe the downside scenario for Android shipments is more likely at this point,” Goldman Sachs tells investors Tuesday.
In an interesting list of potential winners and losers from the shift to tablets, Goldman Sachs analyst Bill Shope points to suppliers, such as Qualcomm, Syncronoss and ARM Holdings as gaining, but traditional low-cost PC makers, such as Acer, Dell, Hewlett-Packard and Intel are getting the short end of the stick.
As for Apple, we may learn more about its iPad sales Wednesday, when the tech giant reports its second-quarter financials after the market closes.
[Barron’s]