Apple's M4 MacBooks can’t come soon enough as Mac sales plummet

Apple’s Mac shipments 17.5% down this quarter

News By Rosario Blue published 10 October 2024

Apple’s Mac sales seem to have dropped dramatically, which means the pressure is on to ensure that the upcoming M4-powered MacBooks are a hit.

Market intelligence experts Canalys has revealed a worrying 17.5% year-on-year drop in Apple Mac shipments last quarter.

This is especially striking when considering that industry-wide laptop and desktop sales have stayed relatively flat, and that the overall PC market has seen growth for four quarters in a row.

Global shipments for PCs reached 66.4 million units in Q3, 2024. That’s a 1.3% year-on-year increase, reports Canalys, with laptops driving growth, which are up 2.8%, while desktop sales are down by 4.6%.

Canalys also predicts further market growth thanks to Microsoft discontinuing support for Windows 10, and Microsoft requiring new machines to run Windows 11, businesses (and users) might have to replace their older machines –or pay Microsoft for extended support contracts.

While this has been going on, Mac shipments have declined from 6.2 million units in 2023 Q3 to 5.1 million units in 2024 Q3. Apple’s share of the PC market pie has declined to 7.7% from 9.5% the previous year.

Why the drop?

There are various reasons why Apple might be experiencing this fall in sales. Macs are expensive and many people are still coping with a cost-of-living crisis, therefore budgets are tighter. Businesses and consumers might be opting for cheaper PCs due to economic uncertainty.

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