IDC’s latest report shows that shipments of personal computers has significantly decreased across the board.  Dell’s shipment is down 11 percent year-over-year, Hewlett-Packard is down by 24 percent, Acer 31 percent and ASUS 19 percent.  The only one who seems unaffected by the decrease on a year over year basis is Lenovo.

Microsoft hoped that its Windows 8 platform would revive PC sales and jumpstart tablet sales, but that hasn’t happened yet.  Consumers prefer to purchase tablets, but not Windows 8-based tablets.

“At this point, unfortunately, it seems clear that the Windows 8 launch not only failed to provide a positive boost to the PC market, but appears to have slowed the market,” said Bob O’Donnell, IDC Program Vice President, Clients and Displays. “While some consumers appreciate the new form factors and touch capabilities of Windows 8, the radical changes to the UI, removal of the familiar Start button, and the costs associated with touch have made PCs a less attractive alternative to dedicated tablets and other competitive devices. Microsoft will have to make some very tough decisions moving forward if it wants to help reinvigorate the PC market.”

A key partner for Microsoft’s software efforts, Dell is in the verge of a buyout and some believe that it’s the only way the company can recover from the PC slump.  Though hope seems lost, the company is not about to throw in the towel.

China invasion

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In March, Dell announced that it would continue to invest in the Chinese market to help customers solve challenging issues and pursue their passions by focusing on Security, Converged Infrastructure, Storage and End User Computing.

“The Chinese market is very impressive and we see strong growth potential here，” said AmitMidha, President of Dell Asia Pacific Japan Region, “We are thrilled to become China’s trustedadvisor for end to end solutions and services, and advance our collaboration to the next level.”

Dell is taking a page from Lenovo’s strategy book by focusing on China and other emerging markets, which lack normal distribution channels.  Lenovo continues to experience success in China and other emerging markets by bringing a wide range of products to the expansive market.

Smaller is smarter

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As the tablet market continues to encroach on PC’s turf, Dell, much like Microsoft, sees the need to deliver more tablets to the table.  Aside from tablets that can be converted into a laptop, the two companies are also considering entering the small tablet market.  This will give consumers more products to choose from as well as give people on a tight budget own a tablet.

“We are really going to be focused on the business environment for tablets,” Peter Marrs, Dell’s executive director for Asian-Pacific end-user computing sales, said. “We are exploring designs for sizes different from the 10-inch—smaller and larger—and you’ll see some of that coming later this year.”

Impending buyout

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As for the proposed buyout, shareholders continue to air their disapproval of Michael Dell’s proposed buyout.  According to Dell shareholder Southeastern Asset Management, the board is rushing the sale because Dell wants to buy.  And instead of offering $15.25 per share, Dell is trying to convince shareholders that the business is in a dire state that it should accept M.Dell’s offer of $13.65.  Also, there are other entities offering more than what M.Dell, Silver Lake and Microsoft proposed.  Carl Icahn bought some of Dell’s loose shares and Blackstone Group, which also placed its bid for the company, is scouting for partners to privatize Dell.

In other news

Dell and Microsoft signed a deal that would allow the OEM to provide Windows Embedded product licenses on its own products.  Effective April 1, Dell can now factory-install Microsoft Embedded operating systems such as Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2, as well as XP Server 2003 R2 and 2008.