Cheap PCs will gradually disappear due to the pressure from smartphones and tablets

Netbooks fueled a PC buying frenzy in 2008, as hundreds of low-powered laptops were available for purchase, some for as little as $150. But those days are over, and low-cost PCs, especially Windows PCs, are becoming increasingly scarce.

As the PC market shrinks, mobile devices have replaced low-cost PCs for many users. Those who are interested in buying a new PC tend to buy high-quality products: low-cost PC buyers are now a "minority."

Low-cost laptops are not extinct, they are just not as plentiful as they were a few years ago. The cheapest laptop on the market is the Chromebook, but its market share was only 2.8% in the first three quarters of 2015. Chromebooks run the Chrome OS operating system and are designed for Web-based computing tasks.

HP and Dell are phasing out low-cost PCs, and now have only a few desktops and laptops priced below $300. They don't want to compete in the low-cost PC market, but want to focus on high-priced products like Apple.

The only big PC makers left competing in the low-cost PC market are Acer, Asus and Lenovo. Lenovo's cheapest laptop is the Windows-based IdeaPad 100, which starts at $179, followed by a Chromebook starting at $199. Other laptops are priced at $341 or more.

Chromebooks sparked a PC price war in 2014 and early 2015, but that war is over. Microsoft responded to the Chromebook challenge by encouraging PC makers to launch low-priced laptops running free Windows 8.1 with Bing. After launching Windows 10, Microsoft no longer offers Windows 8.1 with Bing to PC makers, and most of these low-priced laptops have been withdrawn from the market, said Jay Chou, research manager at market research firm IDC.

Mobile devices have driven away some low-cost PC buyers, who use smartphones and tablets for basic computing tasks. Among the remaining PC buyers, many need fast PCs and are willing to spend money on high-end hardware, such as better displays, faster processors, and more memory and storage devices, Zhou said.

According to IDC data, PC sales in 2015 were 276.21 million units, down 10.4% from 2014. High-priced gaming desktops and notebooks were the fastest growing PC products in 2015. In the next few years, gaming and virtual reality will drive the growth of high-end PC sales.

Businesses will also upgrade their PCs this year, and business laptops and desktops are usually more expensive than home products. Some business customers may turn to hybrid laptops, which are more expensive due to their thin and light design and high-end components.

Intel and AMD said this month they expect PC prices to rise this year, while market research firms Gartner and IDC expect no major changes in PC prices this year, with some exceptions.

According to Gartner analyst Mikako Kitagawa, hybrid prices will gradually decrease as demand rises and component prices fall.

Last year, PC prices in the United States rose, and exchange rate fluctuations affected PC prices in many countries. Kitagawa Mikako said that as in the past, price has no impact on total PC sales, and PC buyers are more concerned about quality. "There will always be people who buy entry-level PCs, but they will be the minority in the market." (Compiled by Shuang Ye)

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.