Dell and HP have to rethink their focus, they say, even if that means moving away from PCs. "The Acers and Lenovos may dominate the traditional PC and laptop sectors, but will we need to store all our files on a local hard drive, and will we need to carry a laptop around?" says David Carini, managing director of Maverick China Research in Beijing.
For more than a decade, the touchscreen's little brother, the touchpad, has dominated the laptop pointer motion sector.
With sub-$300 pricing and tank-like durability, Sector 5's first laptop, the E3 Chromebook, was clearly designed with students in mind.
"I can tell when somebody's watching kittens on their laptop, and there's an entire sector behind them of students who can't focus," Angner said.
We've also seen incredible support from the private sector which has made laptops, digital learning, and more available to our students, helping to create the 24/7 anytime, anywhere learning that is becoming a necessity.
Positions in the private sector are said to come with laptops, travel allowances and cell phone allowances, which are added attractions (participants 3, 5 and 7).
IDC said ChromeOS devices had experienced 1,542% growth over the previous year, which compared with a 12% decline in the notebook and laptop market and a 10% fall in the PC sector as a whole.
Interestingly, handheld devices (such as iPads and e-readers) and laptop computers have driven much of the growth in this sector.
The current favorite whipping boy is the tech sector, but the pain began long before the first laptop was a gleam in British designer Bill Moggridge's eye.
Microsoft, one of the biggest names in the technology sector, has struggled as consumers have shunned traditional PCs and laptops in favour of smartphones and tablet PCs.
