Editor’s note: This press release is sponsored by Acer and was handled by BrandRap, the sales and marketing arm of Rappler. No member of the news and editorial team participated in the publishing of this piece.

“The PC has now become a necessity,” said Sue Ong-Lim, Acer Philippines General Manager, as the International Data Corporation (IDC) announced Acer as the top brand in PC sales with a 27% market share for the 13^th consecutive year. 

Acer has led the notebook category in the Philippines for 16 consecutive years, with a record-high 33% market share in 2021. It had a 30% market share in consumer notebooks and a 34% market share in gaming notebooks.

In the consumer branded desktop category, Acer had a 31% market share in 2021 as it dominated the consumer all-in-one desktop category with a 52% market share. In the monitors category, it had a 22% market share for 2021.

Given that more Filipinos have now become virtually present due to virtual classes and work-from-home setups, the need for devices has shaped the PC demand and defined Acer’s multiple product offerings across all market segments and value for money proposition. 

With this, Acer Philippines has managed to sell over 561,000 units last year, from 394,000 in 2020 and 347,000 in 2019.

“While the demand was strong beyond our expectations, due to online learning and work-from-home needs, including notebook PCs, Chromebooks, monitors, and others, we did our best to fulfill them,” added Ong-Lim.

PC demand growth in the pandemic

The IDC reports that over 1.72 million PCs from different brands were sold in the Philippines in 2021 from 1.35 million in 2020 and 1.34 million in 2019. PCs were relatively in high demand with 350 million units shipped worldwide.

The IDC Quarterly Personal Computing Device Tracker, Q4 2021 also reported that the private sector shaped the growing PC demand due to work-from-home setups and digitization. The share of notebooks in the consumer market went up from 73% before the pandemic to 84% in 2021. For the commercial market, the notebook share went up from 30% in 2018 to 69% in 2021.

Pandemic-related quarantines and lockdowns also drove the growth in gaming and entertainment-related PC sales as Acer’s gaming notebook sales have nearly doubled with 113,000 units sold last year from 75,000 in 2020 and 38,000 in 2019.

Supply issues have also surfaced due to the shortage of semiconductors across the globe, prompting Acer to state that the shortage would continue until at least the second quarter of 2022.

Acer goes green with Earthion

Acer also stepped up its 2021 sustainability efforts by introducing Earthion, a program that enables the tech giant to help tackle environmental challenges through innovative and integrated solutions aligned with sustainability measures. 

Since 2020, Acer engages its entire ecosystem from supply chain partners to consumers and employees as the tech giant’s notebooks have adopted recycled paper for packaging, saving over 8,750 kg of paper pulp and 20 million plastic bags. Over 50 metric tons of batteries were recycled and remanufactured into new ones due to their internal recycling activities.

In 2021, Acer announced a new “enviro-friendly” laptop, the Acer Vero, containing 50% post-consumer recycled plastic in its keyboard caps, and about 30% in other parts, such as the top and bottom cover and screen bezels. Toward the end of 2021, the company expanded its Vero portfolio across a variety of devices.

IDC: PC demand expected to “remain robust”

Due to the digitization of business, growth in e-commerce, and increased spending in the private sector, the IDC said that the uncertainty about future pandemic outbreaks means businesses, schools and consumers will want to be ready for another lockdown. 

With that, Acer opts to diversify its portfolio mix and expand new businesses (i.e. acerpure, Altos, HSN, and Acer Gaming) along with improving value creation and enhancing the consumer journey. Acer will also continue to make efforts to reduce its carbon emission and create more environment-friendly tech products.

“Acer’s goal in 2022 is to optimally perform within core business competencies while we transform to prepare for areas of future growth,” said Ong-Lim.

The International Data Corporation (IDC) is the premier global provider of market intelligence, advisory services, and events for the information technology, telecommunications, and consumer technology markets. – Rappler.com