Are you ready for this? According to research firm Canalys, Apple is now the world's no. 3 PC manufacturer (in terms of units shipped), trailing behind mainstays HP and Acer. In just a year, they have overtaken fellow American company Dell and Chinese juggernaut Lenovo, and it's all thanks to the its newest product, the iPad.
According to Canalys senior analyst Daryl Chiam, "Any argument that a pad is not a PC is simply out of sync. With screen sizes of 7 inches or above, ample processing power, and a growing number of applications, pads offer a computing experience comparable to netbooks." It's a fair inclusion, in our opinion, as Apple doesn't have a budget device, i.e. a netbook, while the rest of the competition does.
Canalys reveals that around 11.5 million Apple computers have been shipped in Q4 of 2011 alone, giving the company a 241% boost from its Q4 2009 figures. Meanwhile, second-placer Acer shipped 13.6 million, while top dog HP shipped a whopping 18.7 million.
However, considering the fact that Apple is the only non-Windows manufacturer in the top 5, then the feat becomes all the more impressive.
Via Slashgear
Source Apple Insider