PC Sales: Lenovo and ASUS Win But Will Intel Lose to ARM?

Lenovo has nearly overtaken Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ) in PC sales. Still, the bigger story involves flat PC demand as iPad sales boom; the wait for Windows 8; and potential PC maker defections from Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) to ARM Holdings (NASDAQgs: ARMH). For a mature market, an awful lot could be changing.

First, the news hook: Gartner and IDC issued Q2 PC sales reports this week, and both showed Lenovo gaining fast vs. Hewlett-Packard. If the current trends continue, Lenovo — which grew PC sales about 15 percent in Q2 — could be the world’s top PC supplier sometime later this year.

Gartner Q2 2012 PC Sales Data

Here’s a look at Gartner’s numbers, which show big growth for Lenovo and ASUS, and double-digit percentage declines for HP and Dell in 2Q12:

Intel vs. ARM Holdings

Meanwhile, some PC makers — namely, HP and Dell — may gradually shift some PC business from Intel to ARM processors, the San Jose Mercury News suggests.

The VAR Guy doesn’t think there will be a landslide PC and server shift to ARM processors. Windows 8 will run on x86, and Windows RT (a close cousin) will run on ARM. But how exactly would all of those PC makers ensure customers are comfortable shifting systems and applications from x86 to ARM processors. Answer: They can’t… at least not overnight.

So for the short term, the PC industry continues to live in the iPad’s sexy shadow. The VAR Guy will be watching to see if Windows 8 can add some new sex appeal to the PC industry.