The forecasts for 2023 within the technological world have not been good at all, and the portable sector is not going to be the exception. A priori it may seem that the picture in general looks very dark, but we must give it the necessary context to avoid falling into misinterpretations.
When the end of 2021 occurred, an important “bonanza” was confirmed globally within the technology sector that, obviously, was largely motivated by the pandemic. Sales skyrocketed and reached totally “abnormal” levels. With the return to normality that took place in 2022, things changed completely, and sales experienced a necessary downward correction that, without a doubt, will continue to take its toll on us during the first half of 2023.
However, it must be borne in mind that It’s only a matter of time until that fix is complete, and that we will eventually reach a stage of recovery in which sales will not only return to normal levels, but could enter a new stage of growth. We all know how these things are, cyclical stages with ups and downs that are repeated over and over again.
Returning to the portable sector, the latest TrendForce forecasts confirm that a significant drop is expected in the first quarter of 2023, but there is also a clear process of recovery in the coming quarters, and this is the positive note with which we must stay.
Taking a tour of the graph we see that from the first to the second quarter of 2022 there was a drop of 14%, and that in the third quarter of 2022 laptop shipments held steady. Another drop of 15.3% took place in Q4 2022, and a drop of 9.5% is expected in Q1 2023, bringing the wearable sector back to levels of ten years ago.
Luckily, from the second quarter of 2023 a growth of 17.8% is expected, and in the third quarter of 2023 the supply volume will also increase by 13.7%. For the fourth quarter of 2023, another growth is expected, although much more modest, since we are talking about a rise of 2.2%.
We will see how the market evolves in the coming quarters, and we will tell you about it. TrendForce’s prediction makes quite a bit of sense, but it is clear that in the end those values that it throws could vary to a lesser or greater extent, or even not be fulfilled if some type of unforeseen event occurs that can significantly affect the portable sector.
