Because the personal computer

Personal computer

A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...

 (PC) is an iconic high tech product the market share of leading PC vendors is watched closely. Market discussion of these devices may include netbooks but do not include media tablets which was dominated by Apple products.

Key developments in recent years have been the battle for the top spot between Dell

Dell

Dell, Inc. is an American multinational information technology corporation based in 1 Dell Way, Round Rock, Texas, United States, that develops, sells and supports computers and related products and services. Bearing the name of its founder, Michael Dell, the company is one of the largest...

 and HP, the rise of Acer, and the dwindling share of PCs sold by companies outside of the top five.

Global PC Market Share by Units, Percent. 2006-2010.
Rank	2006		2007		2008		2009		2010
1	Dell	15.9	HP	18.2	HP	18.4	HP	19.3	HP	17.9
2	HP	15.9	Dell	14.3	Dell	14.3	Acer	13.0	Dell	12.9
3	Lenovo	7.0	Acer	8.9	Acer	11.1	Dell	12.2	Acer	12.0
4	Acer	5.8	Lenovo	7.4	Lenovo	7.2	Lenovo	8.1	Lenovo	9.7
5	Toshiba	3.8	Toshiba	4.0	Toshiba	4.5	Toshiba Toshiba is a multinational electronics and electrical equipment corporation headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. It is a diversified manufacturer and marketer of electrical products, spanning information & communications equipment and systems, Internet-based solutions and services, electronic components and...	5.1	Toshiba	5.4
Others		51.6		47.1		44.5		42.3		42.1

Dell pushed ahead of Compaq in 2001, but returned to second place when HP and Compaq merged in 2002. IBM sold off their PC business to Lenovo, placing a mainland Chinese company in the top five. Acer ascends to the top five in 2004.

Global PC Market Share by Units, Percent. 2001-2005
Rank	2001		2002		2003		2004		2005
1	Dell	13.3	HP-Compaq	16.2	Dell	15.0	Dell	16.4	Dell	16.8
2	Compaq	11.1	Dell	15.2	HP	14.3	HP	14.6	HP	14.5
3	HP	7.2	IBM	6.0	IBM	5.1	IBM	5.5	Lenovo	6.9
4	IBM	6.4	NEC	3.4	Fujitsu*	3.8	Fujitsu*	3.8	Acer	4.6
5	NEC	3.8	Toshiba	3.2	Toshiba	2.9	Acer	3.4	Fujitsu Fujitsu is a Japanese multinational information technology equipment and services company headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. It is the world's third-largest IT services provider measured by revenues.... *	3.8
Others		58.1		56.0		58.9		56.4		53.3

Compaq and IBM dominated the market in the mid-1990s. Dell and HP emerge as important players late in the 1990s while IBMs market share wanes.

Global PC Market Share by Units, Percent. 1996-2000.
Rank	1996		1997		1998		1999		2000
1	Compaq	10.0	Compaq	13.1	Compaq	13.8	Compaq	13.2	Compaq	12.8
2	IBM	8.6	IBM	8.6	IBM	8.2	Dell	9.8	Dell	10.8
3	Packard-Bell NEC	6.0	Dell	5.5	Dell	7.9	IBM	7.9	HP	7.6
4	Apple	5.9	HP	5.3	HP	5.8	HP	6.4	IBM	6.8
5	HP		Packard Bell NEC	5.1	Packard Bell NEC	4.3	Packard Bell NEC	5.2	NEC	4.3
Others				62.2		60.1		57.5		57.7

• Fujitsu figures include Fujitsu Siemens.
• Figures include desktop PCs, mobile PCs, and servers using the Intel x86 processor architecture. 1996-1999 figures exclude x86 PCs.
• Figures subject to revision in later data releases.

Unit Sales to Global PC Market
	1996	1997	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009
Units (M)	70.9	80.6	92.9	113.5	134.7*	128.1	132.4	168.9	189.0	218.5	239.4	271.2	302.2	305.9
Growth (pct.)	17.8	13.7	15.3	21.7	14.5*	-4.6	2.7	10.9	11.8	15.3	9.5	13.4	10.9	1.2

• Figures include desktop PCs, mobile PCs, and servers using the Intel x86 processor architecture. 1996-1999 figures exclude x86 PCs.