LENOVO ThinkPad X1 Fold laptop pre-orders start. World's First.

 

Lenovo has started to accept orders for its ThinkPad X1 Fold light laptop with a 13.3 inches 2048x1536 OLED Display. Is not clear if the supplier of the OLED Displays to Lenovo is LG  Display or BOE at this time.

The price of the device is $2.499.- and some of the specifications are:

• CPU: Intel Lakefield Core i5 processor with Intel Hybrid Technology.
• GPU: Integrated Intel UHD 11th Gen Graphics.
• Memory: 8GB LPDDR4X RAM.
• Storage: Up to 1TB, PCIe-NVMe M.2 SSD.
• Camera: 5MP HD RGB with IR.
• Battery: 50WHr.
• Ports: 2x USB-C (1x Gen 1, 1x Gen 2), 1x SIM Card slot.
• Connectivity: Wi-Fi 6, sub 6 5G, Bluetooth 5.1.
• Dimensions (unfolded): 11.8 x 9.3 x 0.5 inches
  Dimensions (folded): 9.3 x 6.2 x 1.1 inches
  Weight: 2.2 pounds

Pre-order on Lenovo site LENOVO

OLED Info

2Q 2018: WolrdWide PC market share: Lenovo 21.9%, HP 21.9%, Dell 16.8%, says Gartner.

Worldwide PC shipments totaled 62.1 million units in the second quarter of 2018, a 1.4 percent increase from the second quarter of 2017, according to preliminary results by Gartner, Inc. This is the first quarter of year-over-year global PC shipment growth since the first quarter of 2012.

All regions experienced some growth compared with a year ago. While the results are a positive result for the PC industry, Gartner analysts said this sign of market stability is not enough to declare a PC industry recovery just yet.

"PC shipment growth in the second quarter of 2018 was driven by demand in the business market, which was offset by declining shipments in the consumer segment," said Mikako Kitagawa, principal analyst at Gartner. "In the consumer space, the fundamental market structure, due to changes on PC user behavior, still remains, and continues to impact market growth. Consumers are using their smartphones for even more daily tasks, such as checking social media, calendaring, banking and shopping, which is reducing the need for a consumer PC.

"In the business segment, PC momentum will weaken in two years when the replacement peak for Windows 10 passes. PC vendors should look for ways to maintain growth in the business market as the Windows 10 upgrade cycle tails off."

With the completion of Lenovo's joint venture with Fujitsu, three out of four PCs were shipped by the top five PC vendors in the second quarter of 2018. With the inclusion of Fujitsu’s PC shipments due to the joint venture (a formation of Joint Venture with Fujitsu), Lenovo was in a virtual tie with HP Inc. for the top spot in the second quarter of 2018 based on global PC shipments (see Table 1). All of the top five PC vendors experienced an increase in worldwide PC shipments in the quarter.

HP Inc. had its third consecutive quarter of year-over-year PC shipment growth. HP Inc. maintained steady growth across all regions, except the U.S. In the other regions, its shipment growth well exceeded the regional averages. Lenovo experienced its highest growth rate since the first quarter of 2015.

While Dell's competitors have shown PC shipment declines periodically in the past two years, Dell's shipments did not decline during this time because of its strong focus on growth areas, especially in the commercial segment, as well as cutting off unprofitable businesses.

PC shipments in EMEA reached 17.4 million units in the second quarter of 2018, a 1.3 percent increase year over year. In Western Europe, demand was strong for business PCs in Germany and the U.K. Eurasia, which includes Russia, remained the growth region in EMEA. While the second quarter is usually a slower quarter in terms of PC demand, several countries, such as Russia, Ukraine and Kazakhstan, continued to see increasing consumer demand.

PC shipments in Asia/Pacific totaled 21.3 million units, a 0.1 percent increase from the second quarter of 2017. India, Indonesia, Thailand and other emerging markets in Asia showed improvement in the commercial segment due to demand for replacing aging PCs and upgrading to Windows 10. In China, PC shipments declined 3.6 percent year over year as some business procurements have been postponed to 2019, and the consumer market is saturated.

These results are preliminary. Final statistics will be available soon to clients of Gartner's PC Quarterly Statistics Worldwide by Region program. This program offers a comprehensive and timely picture of the worldwide PC market, allowing product planning, distribution, marketing and sales organizations to keep abreast of key issues and their future implications around the globe.

Q3 2017: WorldWide Tablet market share: Apple 25.8%, Samsung 15%, Amazon 10.9%

Notes:

    Total tablet market includes slate tablets plus detachable tablets. References to "tablets" in this release include both slate tablets and detachable devices.

    "Convertibles" refers to convertible notebooks, which are notebook PCs that have keyboards that can either flip, spin, or twist, but unlike detachable tablets, convertible notebook keyboards are hardwired to the display.

    Data is preliminary and subject to change.

    Company shipments are branded device shipments and exclude OEM sales for all companies.

    The "Company" represents the current parent company (or holding company) for all brands owned and operated as subsidiary. 

The third quarter of 2017 (3Q17) closed with 40 million tablets shipped globally, according to preliminary data from the International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Tablet Tracker. Growing demand for smartphones combined with the lengthening replacement cycle of tablets and strengthening position of traditional PCs left the tablet market in an awkward middle ground that it has not been able to escape. Growth in 3Q17 declined 5.4% year over year, marking the twelfth consecutive quarter of annual decline.

"There's a penchant for low-cost slates and this holds true even for premium vendors like Apple," said Jitesh Ubrani, senior research analyst with IDC's Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Device Trackers. "However, many of these low-cost slates are simply long-awaited replacements for consumers as first-time buyers are becoming harder to find and the overall installed base for these devices declines further in the coming years."

Meanwhile, growth in the detachable tablet market has been slower than expected as Apple and Microsoft are essentially the only two vendors supplying the category and other PC vendors champion the convertible PC form factor.

"In a recent IDC survey, owners of both convertibles and detachables stated they were far more inclined to recommend a convertible to another shopper than a detachable," said Linn Huang, research director, Devices & Displays. "Market momentum has steadily shifted away from the latter towards the former over the course of this year. The 2017 holiday season may prove to be a critical crossroad for the detachables category."

Tablet Company Highlights:

Although Apple still enjoys a substantial premium over competitors, the lower-priced iPad has helped it to cement the first-place position. The latest version of iOS has helped make iPads a more serious PC competitor than ever before but the need for legacy apps (especially in the commercial segment) and strong value offerings from other PC and mobile vendors has prevented iPads from becoming the primary computing device for the masses.

Samsung offers one of the broadest range of detachable tablets that includes multiple screen sizes and operating systems yet detachable tablets account for less than 10% of its shipments in the quarter. These high-priced, halo devices have led to Samsung's premium image but the company still relies heavily on the lower cost Tab A and E series. This may create long-term issues as rival tablet vendors often offer products at a better value.

Amazon.com's aggressive hardware strategy in the tablet market has proven to be quite successful as the company managed to grow 38.7% on an annual basis. The low-cost hardware push has always been a means to create a long-standing and ongoing relationship with end users. To that extent, Amazon even offered the 7-inch tablet for under $30 during the Prime Day Sale.

Huawei and Lenovo managed to tie for fourth place as both companies have maintained a similar strategy of focusing on low-cost devices in Asia/Pacific and Western Europe. Huawei has managed to maintain some differentiation by concentrating on cellular-enabled tablets while Lenovo recently launched the Tab 4 lineup, which offers competitive specs and features at a great value. 

1Q 2017: HP recovers top spot of worldwide PC market,says IDC .

Worldwide shipments of traditional PCs (desktop, notebook, workstation) totaled 60.3 million units in the first quarter of 2017 (1Q17), posting year-over-year growth of 0.6%, according to the International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Personal Computing Device Tracker. The previous forecast had expected shipments to decline 1.8% in the quarter. And, while the 0.6% growth was arguably flat, the result nonetheless represented the first foray back into positive territory since Q1 2012, when many users still considered PCs their first computing device.

Like the second half of 2016, some of the same forces continue to shape the market. Tight supplies of key components such as NAND and DRAM are affecting inventory dynamics and led a number of vendors to boost shipments to lock in supply ahead of further cost increases. In addition, the market continued along a path of stabilization that began in the latter half of last year, especially as more commercial projects moved out of pilot mode and began shipments in earnest.

From a geographic perspective, mature markets again outdid emerging markets. All regions exceeded forecast except for the United States, although the U.S. posted just a slight decline. Despite the generally positive trends, Asia/Pacific (excluding Japan)(APeJ) and Latin America continued to see year-over-year volume declines.

"The traditional PC market has been through a tough phase, with competition from tablets and smartphones as well as lengthening lifecycles pushing PC shipments down roughly 30% from a peak in 2011," said Jay Chou, research manager, IDC PCD Tracker. "Nevertheless, users have generally delayed PC replacements rather than giving up PCs for other devices. 

The commercial market is beginning a replacement cycle that should drive growth throughout the forecast. Consumer demand will remain under pressure, although growth in segments like PC Gaming as well as rising saturation of tablets and smartphones will move the consumer market toward stabilization as well."

"The U.S. PC market had a weak opening quarter for the year with the consumer PC segment failing to impress after doing fairly well in the previous quarter," said Neha Mahajan, senior research analyst, Devices & Displays. "Apart from factors such as relatively improved commercial PC performance as well as a few component shortages, which continued to add to a better inventory situation, the overall PC performance for the quarter remained fairly sublime."

Regional Highlights

United States: The traditional PC market declined slightly year over year as notebook PCs saw sales slumping this quarter. After a strong holiday season at the end of 2016, the consumer PC market witnessed a comparative slow down this quarter with lower sell-out while the commercial PC market came out strong mostly backed by growth of Chromebooks. Overall, total PC shipments for 1Q17 totaled 13.3 million units.

Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA): The EMEA traditional PC market stabilized for the second consecutive quarter, thanks to strong notebook performance. The combination of backlogs, fulfillment from previous quarters, and solid mobility demand in enterprises boosted overall notebook shipments in 1Q17. However, desktops continued to erode, in line with expectations.

Asia/Pacific (excluding Japan): The APeJ market remained soft. Weakness in the consumer market persisted, as demand and shipments in many countries were impacted by price increases fueled by tight component supply. The pricing pressure was felt in the Chinese consumer market despite continuing strong demand for gaming and ultraslim notebooks. 

The commercial market in China performed better, driven by demand in the public sector. The education segment drove shipments in the commercial space, with several projects delivered throughout the region. India saw a rebound after the demonetization severely affected the market in the previous quarter while the back-to-school season allowed for healthy volumes in Korea.

Japan: The traditional PC market has recovered with healthy macroeconomics and an emerging PC refreshment cycle, especially in commercial, leading to the first year-on-year growth since Q2 2014.

Vendor Highlights

HP Inc. took back the top spot for the first time since Q1 2013 after several quarters inching closer to Lenovo. The vendor has focused on building out a deep portfolio and saw a strong quarter in notebooks across all regions.

Lenovo held the second position with relative modest growth of 1.7% globally. Lenovo had its first decline in the U.S. since Q3 2009, down 4.2% year over year.

Dell captured the third position, grew 6.2% year over year, and continued its positive growth in every region with strong notebook volume. Dell posted growth in all markets, although the U.S. slowed relative to others.

Apple kept the fourth position and grew 4.1% year over year.

Acer regained the fifth position, growing 2.9% in part due to better comparisons against a challenging 1Q 2016.

Year 2016: Tablets Global Shipments market share: Apple 27%, Samsung 17.2%, Amazon 7%

Market research firm TrendForce reports annual tablet shipments worldwide posted a decline for 2016, dropping 6.6% to 157.4 million units. However, total shipments from branded tablet vendors surpassed expectations because of the robust year-end holiday sales.

"Together, major tablet brands posted a marginal decline in their total shipments for 2016," said Anita Wang, TrendForce notebook analyst. "Chief shipment contributors included Apple and Amazon. The former enjoyed strong iPad sales in the fourth-quarter busy season, and the latter nearly doubled its annual shipments. Other brands such as Huawei, Lenovo and Acer also expanded their shipments despite market headwinds."

As for white-box (white brand) vendors, Wang pointed out that their shipments were impacted by limited panel supply. "Due to profit considerations, panel makers scaled back the supply of tablet panels," noted Wang. "As a result, global white-box tablet shipments for 2016 fell by more than 20% compared with the previous year."

Going into 2017, demand for tablets will continue to be curtailed by the increasing consumer preference for large-size smartphones. Furthermore, major brands and white-box vendors will be constrained by insufficient panel inventory as South Korean panel makers cut back on the production of LCD tablet panels. According to TrendForce's projection, this year's global tablet shipments will come to 147.8 million units, a drop of 6.1% from 2016.

Apple posted better than expected iPad shipments last year; at least three new iPad models are lined up for 2017

Global iPad shipments for 2016 totaled 42.55 million units, representing an annual decline of 14.1%. Nonetheless, iPad shipments on the whole were above market expectations. Strong demand in North America and exceptional results from year-end holiday sales sustained iPad shipments last year.

Wang pointed out that Apple has as many as three to four new iPad products lined up for 2017. "In addition to an economically priced 9.7-inch model that is ready for market release, Apple will also launch a new 12.9-inch model," said Wang. "Furthermore, Apple will also introduce a new 10.5-inch iPad. This will be a new size category for the device series."

TrendForce estimates that this year's iPad shipments will fall by 6~8% annually to around 40 million units. There are reports of a "Pro" version of iPad mini being planned. If Apple decides to release such a product this year, the annual iPad shipments may stabilize and even register growth.

Samsung remains focused on promoting OLED tablets

Samsung's tablet shipments for 2016 fell 19.4% annually to 27 million units. "The general decline in tablet demand and the fierce market competition compel Samsung to offer products with higher specifications and unique features to in order to maintain profitability for its tablet business," said Wang. "OLED displays therefore will continue to be an important part of Samsung's marketing strategy for this year." Samsung has scheduled two models, respectively sized 9.7 and 12 inches, to be released in the first quarter of 2017. Both models will feature an OLED screen.

Samsung's tablet shipments for this year are estimated to fall by 8~10% annually to around 25 million units. The brand will be concentrating on developing the high-end segment of the tablet market with OLED products rather than growing its shipment volume.

Microsoft saw flat shipment growth last year and will face the challenge of supply bottleneck for panels this year

Looking at other brands, Amazon posted a phenomenal 99.4% annual growth in its tablet shipments for 2016, totaling 11 million units. Amazon benefited from its vast base of service subscribers and was very successful in its fourth-quarter promotional activities. By nearly doubling its annual volume, Amazon climbed to the third place in the 2016 ranking of tablet brands.

In addition to the home market, Lenovo also targeted Europe, North America and Japan for shipment expansion last year. Lenovo grew its global tablet shipments by 12.3% annually to 10.9 million units and took fourth place in the 2016 ranking. Lenovo did particularly well in the fourth quarter as favorable currency exchange rates increased channel distributors' stock-up demand for its products.

Huawei last year committed substantial resources on its tablet products with a special focus on tablets with phone function and low-priced models. The brand also expanded shipments in overseas markets by leveraging its smartphone channels and close relationships with telecom companies. Huawei retained its fifth-place position in the annual tablet shipment ranking with a volume of 9.77 million units for 2016.

Microsoft in the second half of 2016 oriented its marketing efforts for the Surface Pro series towards business customers and made a strong sales push in the year-end holiday season. On the whole, Microsoft's shipments of the Surface Pro series totaled about 3.89 million last year, a decline of just 1.4% compared with the 2015 shipment figure for the device series. The brand held on to its sixth-place position in the annual ranking.

Looking ahead, Microsoft has scheduled to launch Surface Pro 5 in the first half of 2017. However, Wang noted that shipments of the Surface Pro series are going to be affected by low panel supply through 2017. "The decision by the major panel supplier Samsung Display (SDC) to reduce its LCD tablet panel production, along with the limited Oxide TFT capacity, will work against Microsoft as it tries to secure panel supply for the Surface Pro series," said Wang.

TrendForce's current shipment estimate for the Surface Pro series in 2017 is less than 3 million units. On the other hand, Microsoft also has a 10-inch device in the works. If this product is released this year and does well in sales, then there is possibility for upward revisions in Microsoft's shipments of the Surface Pro series.

ASUS shipped 3.4 million tablets in 2016, representing a significant drop of 35.3% from 2015. ASUS currently wants to maintain profitability for its tablet business and is not interested in lowering prices to boost sales. If the brand stays with this strategy during 2017, its annual shipments are expected to fall by 5~10%.

Samsung and Lenovo in talks to sell/buy PC Samsung business.

Samsung seems to be very decided on exiting the PC market, especially because the company has been struggling on it for many years and is in  talks with Chinese world`s PC sales leader Lenovo.

South Korean media outlet Bell reports that if talks are successful between the two companies the deal price could be close to 1tn won ($850m, £680m) even though Samsung has rarely revealed the breakdown revenue of its PC business. While Samsung has Paul Hastings as its legal advisor for the deal Lenovo is being represented by Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer.

Samsung has already stopped selling its PCs in the UK and made an abrupt exit from the European market as well in 2014 owing to competition from other PC giants like HP and Lenovo. It however, still operates in markets like US and other parts of the world and a deal will help Lenovo increase its market share even further in the PC industry.

The latest attempt is in line with the Korean tech giant's efforts to get rid off business that are not bringing enough profits to the table. It recently sold its printer business to HP Inc, the world's largest printer maker for $1.05bn.

softpedia

Tablets 3Q 2016: WorldWide Market share: Apple 21.5%, Samsung 15.1%, Amazon 7.3%, Lenovo 6.3% says IDC. Market declines 14.7%

Notes:
• Total tablet market includes slate tablets plus detachable tablets. References to "tablets" in this release include both slate tablets and detachable devices.
• Data is preliminary and subject to change.
• Vendor shipments are branded device shipments and exclude OEM sales for all vendors.
• The "Vendor" represents the current parent company (or holding company) for all brands owned and operated as subsidiary.

Low-Cost Detachables and Slates in the Lead as Tablet Market Slump Persists in the Third Quarter, According to IDC       

The worldwide tablet market continued its slump as vendors shipped 43 million units in the third quarter of 2016 (3Q16), a year-over-year decline of 14.7%, according to preliminary data from the International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Tablet Tracker. In contrast to the annual decline, 3Q16 shipments were up 9.8% over the second quarter of 2016 as the larger vendors prepared for the holiday quarter.

Low-cost (sub-$200) detachables also reached an all-time high as vendors like RCA flooded the market. "Unfortunately, many low-cost detachables also deliver a low-cost experience," said Jitesh Ubrani, senior research analyst with IDC's Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Device Trackers. "The race to the bottom is something we have already experienced with slates and it may prove detrimental to the market in the long run as detachables could easily be seen as disposable devices rather than potential PC replacements."

"Beyond the different end-user experience delivered by low- and high-end tablets, we're witnessing real tectonic movements in the market with slate companion devices sold at the low-end serving a broader platform strategy, like Amazon is doing with Alexa on its Fire Tablets, and more expensive productivity tools closer to true computing and legitimate notebook replacement devices that should manage to keep average prices up," said Jean Philippe Bouchard, research director, Tablets at IDC.

Tablet Vendor Highlights

Despite Apple's marketing push for the iPad Pro, the iPad Air and Mini lines have been the models with mass appeal, accounting for more than two-thirds of its shipments this quarter. Although Apple's tablet shipments declined 6.2% year over year, total iPad-related revenues were flat for the quarter, thanks to the iPad Pro offering.

Samsung continued to hold the number 2 position. Fortunately, the negative press from the Note 7 did not bleed over into its tablet business. However, overreliance on the declining slate market led to a decline of 19.3% compared to 3Q15. Samsung's attempt to enter the detachable market with its TabPro S at the beginning of 2016 seems to have taken a backseat as its price and positioning remain uncompetitive.

The Amazon Prime Day sale in early July led to a huge surge in shipments of its Fire tablets. The already low-priced device was offered at a 30% discount then, and continued to remain popular throughout the rest of the quarter. The new Fire HD 8 released in early October will likely perform well in the holiday quarter as it follows Amazon's strategy of selling low-cost tablets as a gateway and companion to its ecosystem. It is important to note that Amazon's unprecedented growth is partially attributed to the fact that IDC did not include the 6-inch tablets offered by Amazon in 3Q15.

Lenovo continued to maintain its stronghold in Asia/Pacific (excluding Japan) as well as Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA). Though the company has many aspirational products across all its entire consumer electronics portfolio, none were enough to raise the company's profile in the tablet market, resulting in a 10.8% decline this quarter. While the latest Yoga Book announced at IFA garnered some praise, it is important to note that IDC will be counting this as a traditional PC.

Huawei's strong presence in the adjacent smartphone market and overall brand recognition has cascaded into the tablet market. The vendor offers a very strong value proposition as many of its tablets (over two-thirds) come integrated with cellular connectivity while maintaining a similar price to rivals who only offer WiFi-enabled devices. Huawei's presence in Asian, European, and Middle Eastern & African markets remains strong. 

iCharts

2Q 2016: WorldWide PC Monitor market share: Dell 17%, HP Inc 13%, Lenovo 10% says IDC.

The total worldwide PC monitor market shipped more than 30 million units in the second quarter of 2016 (2Q16), up 4.9% year over year and 4.6% quarter over quarter, according to the International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly PC Monitor Tracker.

"The second quarter proved better than forecast overall, with the U.S., EMEA, and Canada markets recording solid year-over-year results. However, IDC expects the global monitor market will continue to decline at rates around 3% year over year from 2018 through 2020," said Maura Fitzgerald, senior research analyst, Worldwide Trackers.

IDC currently forecasts 118 million PC monitor units will be shipped for the full year 2016 and expects to see a year-over-year decline of 12.7% in worldwide shipments to 26.7 million units in the second quarter of 2017. By 2020, worldwide shipments are expected to be less than 100 million units as the adoption of mobile devices at lower price points is expected to continue.

Technology Highlights

• Curved monitors continue to be on the rise, with 1.9% market share in 2Q16. This represents year-over-year growth of 221%.

• 21.5-inches wide and 19.5-inches wide segments continue to dominate the worldwide market, with 22.0% and 12.2% market share respectively in 2Q16. Of the top 10 screen sizes, 23.8-inches wide and 31.5-inches wide saw the largest year-over-year growth, posting 100.1% and 76.8%, respectively, in 2Q16.

• Monitors with TV tuners are expected to have 5.3% market share in 2Q17, up from 4.8% in 2Q16, led by LG and Samsung with a combined market share of 99.0% in this category.

Vendor Highlights

• Dell – Dell stayed in the top position in 2Q16 with worldwide market share of 17.0% on shipments of more than 5.2 million units. The vendor posted strong year-over-year growth in Central & Eastern Europe (31.2%), Canada (25.5%), and Middle East & Africa (18.0%).

• HP – HP saw 4 million units shipped, resulting in 13% share in 2Q16. Year-over-year unit increases of 51.1% in the U.S. and 22.4% in Central & Eastern Europe helped bring the vendor a total year-over-year increase of 19.6%.

• Lenovo – Lenovo made significant gains, moving into the top 3 position with year-over-year growth of 2.7% to more than 3 million units shipped. Lenovo also posted significant quarter-over-quarter growth of 27.1%, with especially large growth in Central & Eastern Europe (114.5%) and Asia/Pacific (excluding Japan) (33.1%).

• Samsung – Samsung moved down to the number four position with nearly 3 million units shipped. The vendor saw a year-over-year decline in all regions except Central & Eastern Europe, and Canada.

• LG Electronics – LG rounded out the Top 5 in 2Q16 with 9.2% market share in the worldwide market. The vendor logged year-over-year gains across all regions except Middle East & Africa.
  
  

iCharts

IFA 2016: LENOVO teases new line of Moto mods, Tablets. Moto 360, foldable phones, keyboards. Video.

Lenovo is inviting to join them at IFA 2016 to know what is new:

"From New chapter in tablets to New Moto mods. From devices that blur the line of  creativity and productivity to a whole new kind of intuitive  keyboard" 

That is what Lenovo is saying on the video teaser where you can watch the company teasing a Moto 360 (3rd Gen is expected, Motod Mods, foldable phones keyboard, tablets.

We think the foldable phones are just for to show them and not for a commercial purpose yet.

The Video Teaser: 

Lenovo is going to hold a press conference in August 31.

Foldable Smartphone WAR is about to start in 2017. Samsung first foldable phone is around the corner, says CEO.

3 years ago  Samsung showed the first foldable screens at CES 2013. There is a video ad since then showing 2 foldable smartphones concepts: phone to tablet and a phone with rollable screen that was also presented early this year.

Samsung’s first foldable phone is “right around the corner” according to Gregory Lee, President and CEO of Samsung Telecommunications America.

Samsung is not the only company that will make foldable smartphones. Recently Lenovo presented a slim smartphone that bends around your wrist like a smartphone, and a tablet that folds in half to convert it on a phone.

LG and Chinese startup Moxi Group are testing their concepts as well.

Speaking at the Future:Mobile conference, and reported by Recode, Lee said that the new bendable phones are incoming.

Explaining the delay behind getting them to market he continued, “it just has been very difficult to manufacture at a reasonable cost”. 

Rumors are saying Samsung will unveil more foldable smartphones concepts this August when the company will launch the Galaxy Note 7 and the Galaxy Note 7 edge.

We expect slim designs and light to carry models for the upcoming foldable smartphones in 2017.

MOXIPHONE

LENOVO C PLUS

Forbes via Recode

Samsung Galaxy S7 edge Dual SIM:

1Q 2016: Samsung doubles Apple in smartphone worldwide market share: Samsung 27.80%, Apple 14.40%, Huawei 9.30%

Global market research firm TrendForce reports that the worldwide smartphone shipments in the first quarter of 2016 totaled 292 million units, down 18.6% from the previous quarter and a year-on-year decline of 1.3%. The decrease was mainly attributed to market saturation. Leading brands such as Samsung and Apple no longer have the same growth momentum as before, so the overall shipments depended on contributions from Chinese brands and rising demand in India and other emerging markets.

Avril Wu, TrendForce smartphone analyst, said the combined shipments (including exports) from Chinese brands in the first quarter reached 125 million units, surpassing the combined shipments from Samsung and Apple for the first time. Chinese brands accounted for 42.9% of the global smartphone shipments, up from 41.5% in the previous quarter. In their home market, Chinese brands have benefitted from increasing subsidies for 4G smartphones from domestic telecom operators. 

At the same time, they have gain grounds in foreign markets. As a result, Chinese smartphone makers did not suffer as steep shipment decline as their foreign competitors did in the off-peak season of the first quarter. Their combined quarterly shipments fell by only 16%. On the other hand, the competition in the overseas markets have intensified as major international brands are struggling to keep their market shares. This will continue to put pressure on Chinese vendors’ margins.

Apple is unlikely to make a turnaround for this year’s shipments with iPhone SE; Samsung grew its shipments against market headwinds.

Apple posted its largest quarterly decline ever for iPhone shipments, plummeting 43.8% from 75 million units in last year’s fourth quarter to just 42 million units in this first quarter. Sales of iPhone 6s have been lackluster as the model lacks exciting new features. Moreover, Apple’s management of channel inventories have become more conservative before the launch of its next iPhone. TrendForce thus has lowered its iPhone shipment estimate for this year to 213 million units, an almost 10% drop compared with the previous year.

Wu said: “As the budget model, iPhone SE will support Apple’s overall shipments in the second quarter before the next major iPhone release. However, iPhone SE is going to face severe price competition from Chinese branded products in its target market, which is the mid-range device segment. This year’s iPhone SE shipments are projected to come in below 15 million units and they are unlikely to help turn around the weak annual shipment result for Apple.”

Samsung’s first-quarter shipments exceeded expectations and arrived at 81 million units, up 2.5% from the prior quarter. Samsung boosted its smartphone sales by launching its flagships Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge ahead of schedule and stepping up its promotional activities. 

Additionally, the vendor’s J series, which consists of entry-level devices with high cost-performance ratios, has been a success in China and worldwide. TrendForce has raised Samsung’s 2016 shipment projection to 316 million units, which is about the same level as last year. This upward revision in the shipment estimate also suggests that the vendor is going to retain its market share by keeping margins low. Hence, Samsung’s mobile profit may drop slightly in the next few quarters.

Compared with other smartphone makers, LG has put in a bit more effort in developing new designs and features for its products – from G3, the first smartphone with a 2K screen, to V10 that came with a secondary display for notifications. G5, the flagship that the South Korean brand revealed at this year’s Mobile World Congress, is the first “modular type” mobile device. 

This design features detachable component modules, which allow the customization and enhancement of G5’s functionality. Besides batteries, G5 users can also swap camera and audio components. Despite LG’s innovations, it posted a slight shipment decline in this first quarter due to encountering escalating market competition. The company stayed at No. 6 in the worldwide market share ranking.

1Q 2016: WorldWide PC market share: Lenovo 19.3%, HP 17.6%, Dell 14.1%, says Gartner.

Gartner Says Worldwide PC Shipments Declined 9.6 Percent in First Quarter of 2016

Currency Issues Continued to Impact the PC Industry.

Worldwide PC shipments totaled 64.8 million units in the first quarter of 2016, a 9.6 percent decline from the first quarter of 2015, according to preliminary results by Gartner, Inc. This was the sixth consecutive quarter of PC shipment declines, and the first time since 2007 that shipment volume fell below 65 million units.

"The deterioration of local currencies against the U.S. dollar continued to play a major role in PC shipment declines. Our early results also show there was an inventory buildup from holiday sales in the fourth quarter of 2015," said Mikako Kitagawa, principal analyst at Gartner.

"All major regions showed year-over-year shipment declines, with Latin America showing the steepest drop, where PC shipments declined 32.4 percent. The Latin American PC market was intensely impacted by Brazil, where the problematic economy and political instability adversely affected the market, Ms. Kitagawa said. 

 "The ongoing decline in U.S. PC shipments showed that the installed base is still shrinking, a factor that played across developed economies. Low oil prices drove economic contraction in Latin America and Russia, changing them from drivers of growth to market laggards."

PCs are not being adopted in new households as they were in the past, especially in emerging markets. In these markets, smartphones are the priority. In the business segment, Gartner analysts said the Windows 10 refresh is expected to start toward the end of 2016.

Lenovo maintained the No. 1 position in worldwide PC shipments in the first quarter of 2016 despite a 7.2 percent decline in shipments (see Table 1). Lenovo experienced a shipment decline in all regions except North America, where the company's PC units increased 14.6 percent from the same period last year. In the last four quarters, Lenovo has showed double-digit shipment growth in the U.S., while the overall market has declined.

HP was split into Hewlett Packard Enterprise and HP Inc. at the end of 2015, and HP Inc.'s first quarter indicates the challenges the company faces in the PC market. HP Inc. has said it wants to stay away from low-profit segments, and the first quarter of 2016 results reflect its efforts to emphasize high-end sales, which cost it shipments.

Dell's worldwide PC shipments declined 0.4 percent in the first quarter, which was much better than the global industry average. Dell shipments increased in North America and Japan, but shipments declined in EMEA, Asia/Pacific and Latin America.

In the U.S., PC shipments totaled 13.1 million units in the first quarter of 2016, a 6.6 percent decline from the first quarter of 2015. U.S. PC shipment volume was the lowest in three years.

"Vendors that had a strong consumer focus struggled to increase sell in shipments," Ms. Kitagawa said. "There was no particular motivation for U.S. consumers to purchase PCs in the first quarter of 2016. There have been increased sales of two-in-one PCs, but not enough to offset the decline in desktop and traditional notebook sales."

Dell surpassed HP Inc. to become the No. 1 vendor in the U.S. market based on shipments (see Table 2). Dell's PC shipments grew 3.1 percent in the U.S., while HP Inc.'s shipments declined 17.3 percent. Dell benefited from focusing on the business segment instead of the consumer market.

Asia/Pacific PC shipments reached 23.3 million units in the first quarter of 2016, a 5.1 percent decline from the first quarter of 2015. The ongoing fragile Chinese economy and weak global demand continued to dampen consumer sentiment in the region. With high PC penetration in the major cities, it was a challenge to invoke PC replacements on the appeal of new technology. The PC life cycle is lengthening as many consumers are waiting until their PC breaks down before purchasing a new one.

PC shipments in EMEA totaled 19.5 million units in the first quarter of 2016, a decline of 10 percent year over year. In Western Europe, consumer demand remained stable in Germany and the U.K., while in France, the PC segment was impacted by the transition to high-definition TV. Consumers preferred to buy new TVs or a specific box for the TV reception. In the business segment, large organizations are testing and evaluating Windows 10, and major deployment will start at the end of 2016.

These results are preliminary. Final statistics will be available soon to clients of Gartner's PC Quarterly Statistics Worldwide by Region program. This program offers a comprehensive and timely picture of the worldwide PC market, allowing product planning, distribution, marketing and sales organizations to keep abreast of key issues and their future implications around the globe.