Skip to main content

HP Unseats Dell as Top PC Maker

New market research reports from both Gartner and IDC show the computer maker Hewlett-Packard has edged out direct marketer Dell to take over the top spot among PC manufacturers worldwide in the third quarter of this year. According to both companies, the overall PC market grew by just less than 7 percent, but HP edged out Dell in total sales either by 110,000 PCs (according to Gartner) or about 28,000 PCs (according to IDC). Dell still commands the top spot in the U.S. market with over 30 percent marketshare, but HP made domestic gains as well, raising its share to between 22 and 23 percent.

The new assessments come as both companies are trying to mitigate damage from recent events: HP’s board has bee rocked by scandal and resignations following a clandestine, possibly illegal operation to track down a board room leak, and, to date, Dell has taken the brunt of the recent recalls of Sony-made laptop batteries, being forced to replace some 4.1 million batteries. Sony just placed the total number of batteries to be recalled at 9.6 million, meaning nearly 43 percent of the possibly defective batteries shipped with Dell systems.

Gartner and IDCs reports also contains a few other surprises; for instance, Apple Computer saw unit shipments increase more than 30 percent in all market regions except Japan, with Gartner pegging the company’s market share for the third quarter at 6.1 percent.

Editors' Recommendations

Geoff Duncan
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Geoff Duncan writes, programs, edits, plays music, and delights in making software misbehave. He's probably the only member…
This HP Omen gaming laptop with RTX 4050 is $450 off
The HP Omen 16 gaming laptop on a desk.

You'll certainly get a much more powerful machine if you're willing to spend more than $1,000 on gaming laptop deals, but it's not a requirement if you just want to enjoy today's most popular games. Here's a device that's relatively budget-friendly -- the HP Omen 16, which is down to $850 from its original price of $1,300 following a $450 discount from HP. We're not sure how much time is remaining for you to get the gaming laptop at 34% off though, so we recommend pushing through with the purchase immediately.

Why you should buy the HP Omen 16 gaming laptop
The HP Omen 16 isn't as powerful as the top-of-the-line models of the best gaming laptops, but it packs more than enough punch to play the best PC games without any issues. Inside the device are the AMD Ryzen 5 7640HS processor and the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4050 graphics card, plus 16GB of RAM that's the best place to start for gaming, according to our guide on how much RAM do you need. With these specifications, your video games will be running smoothly, and they'll look sharp and colorful on the HP Omen 16's 16.1-inch screen with Full HD resolution and a 144Hz refresh rate.

Read more
This Lenovo gaming PC with RTX 3050 and 16GB of RAM is on sale for $650
The Lenovo LOQ Tower Gaming Desktop on a white background.

You don't have to spend more than $1,000 for a powerful gaming PC because there are budget-friendly options like the Lenovo LOQ Tower gaming desktop, which is currently even cheaper from Best Buy due to a $250 discount. From an already affordable sticker price of $900, the machine is down to just $650 -- but we don't think this price is going to last long. There's a chance that the offer expires as soon as tomorrow, so if you don't want to miss out on the savings, it's highly recommended that you complete your purchase within the day.

Why you should buy the Lenovo LOQ Tower gaming desktop
The Lenovo LOQ Tower is much more affordable than the top-of-the-line models of the best gaming PCs, However, it won't make you feel that you're playing on a budget machine because it's pretty fast and smooth with the 13th-generation Intel Core i5 processor and the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050 graphics card, plus 16GB of RAM that our guide on how to buy a gaming desktop says will be enough for most gamers. The Lenovo LOQ Tower also comes with a 512GB SSD, for ample storage space for several AAA titles, and with Windows 11 Home pre-loaded, you can start installing the best PC games right after setting it up with its peripherals and power supply.

Read more
Best desktop computer deals: The cheapest PC deals today
dell inspiron desktop deal april 2023 pc lifestyle

While many people may prefer laptops, desktops offer many great benefits, too, from being able to change and customize the hardware to being able to handle heavier loads, such as playing some of the best PC games. They can also be a good starting point if you don't want to spend a ton of money but instead buy a good base to upgrade in the future. Pricing is also a bit all over the place, but generally, you can get some pretty great desktop deals, even on the best desktop computers on the market.

That's why we've gone out and found our favorite deals that will give you the best bang for your buck so that you don't get too overwhelmed with all the options out there. Also, if you're looking for something better suited to gaming, then you may want to check out these gaming PC deals as well.
Lenovo IdeaCentre 3i Desktop --  $300, was $400

Read more