After consecutive quarters of disappointing sales, there is a glimmer of hope for PC makers. TrendForce forecasts an increase in device shipments this quarter.

The PC industry is going through tough times. After the boom year 2021, when consumers and home workers urgently needed additional devices at home, the inevitable slump in sales came last year. The decline will continue in 2023. According to figures from TrendForce, almost 34 million laptops were sold in the first quarter of the year: 13 percent fewer than in the previous quarter and 39 percent fewer than in the first quarter of 2022.

As the saying goes, the night is always darkest just before sunrise, and the PC industry seems to be at that darkest point now. TrendForce speaks of “economic headwind” due to high inflation in many markets and the resulting falling demand for electronic devices. Nevertheless, the analysis house sees reason for optimism; which the manufacturers will be only too happy to hear.

Nvidia comes to the rescue

The deus ex machina is Nvidia. The GPU specialist will announce new midrange and entry-level graphics cards in May. This should encourage gamers to buy a new laptop. The increased interest in artificial intelligence should have a positive effect on the demand for heavy duty machines. Although both are niche categories, TrendForce sees laptop sales rising again to 37.6 million, up 11 percent.

However, TrendForce does not see a full recovery in demand in 2023. The total number of laptops sold in 2023 will remain thirteen percent lower than in 2022, which was already not a peak year. There may be light, but the end of the tunnel has not yet been reached.