Lenovo Passes Apple in Sales

Lenovo is the new No. 1 in the global PC market that also includes tablets, according to just released data from research firm Canalys, toppling Apple. Unlike other research firms such as IDC and Gartner, Canalys chooses to include tablets in its statistics.

The report is some good news for Lenovo which ranks No. 1 in PC-laptop sales but has seen tablet shipments fall along with smartphone sales.

However, Canalys also notes that Lenovo passed Apple in the second quarter of this year as sales of iPads are "fading."

Apple shipped some 240,00 fewer units, including 10.9 million iPads.

Tim Coulling, Canalys' Senior Analyst, sees the trend going forward favoring Lenovo but notes the company, which operates its global executive headquarters in Morrisville, faces problems, too.

"With a more diverse product portfolio, Lenovo is in a stronger position than Apple to cement its lead in the market," he said. "But it is not without its own challenges, and has recently had to take steps to clear a significant build-up of PC inventory in EMEA.’

HP came in third, Dell fourth, Samsung fifth.