Desktop CPU Shipments Fell In Q1 For 'Worst Quarterly' Drop In History
In another sign that PC demand is cooling, shipments for desktop CPUs took a historic dive in Q1, according to Mercury Research, which tracks component sales.
During the period, CPU shipments for x86 processors fell quarter-over-quarter across PCs and servers. But the drop was especially high for desktop processor shipments, which decreased quarter-over-quarter by more than 30%.
The drop represents “the worst quarterly desktop CPU shipment decline in history,” according to Dean McCarron, president of Mercury Research.
However, the steep 30% decline isn’t that alarming when you look at the numbers on a year-over-year basis. “On year, it's down a bit more than 11%,” McCarron said in an email.
Mercury Research is attributing the shipment decline to “excess desktop CPU inventory,” and to the normal seasonal downturn during the January to March period. The findings echo Intel’s own earnings report for Q1, which noted that many PC makers have been focused on selling existing product inventory over ordering new chips due to inflationary pressures. In early March, both AMD and Intel also stopped chip sales to Russia and Belarus due to the invasion of Ukraine.
PC sales have been decreasing almost two years after the market saw skyrocketing demand for computing on COVID-19 causing a rush to work and study at home. Despite the downturn, Mercury Research noted the average selling price for laptop and desktop CPUs reached a new high in Q1, thanks to higher-end processors hitting the market.
AMD also continued to expand its hold over the x86 CPU market against Intel. “AMD gained share in the first quarter and set a new record high at 27.7 percent, beating the 25.6 percent record set last quarter,” McCarron said.
The 27.7%
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