MacBook Shipments Surge But Customer Demand Remains Unclear

Apple shipped significantly more MacBooks during the first quarter of 2025, outpacing the broader PC market, according to new estimates from Counterpoint Research.

M4 MacBook Air 13 and 15 inch Feature Pink and Yellow
While the overall PC market grew 6.7% compared to the same period in 2024, Apple led major vendors with a 17% increase in unit shipments. However, the report attributes much of the industry's first-quarter gains to accelerated shipments as manufacturers moved to avoid new tariffs expected to be implemented by the United States later in the year.

Temporary exemptions on tariffs for certain electronic products allowed companies to front-load shipments during the exemption window. As a result, the increase in shipped units does not necessarily translate to higher sales to end users, and many of the products delivered in the first quarter are expected to remain in inventory throughout the coming months.

For Apple, the launch of the M4 MacBook Air in March 2025 also contributed to its shipment volume. Despite Apple touting the M4 chip's AI capabilities, the report notes that the shipment gains are not necessarily a sign of growing consumer interest in AI PCs.

Apple reportedly increased its share of global PC shipments from approximately 9% in the first quarter of 2024 to 10% in the first quarter of 2025. Lenovo retained the largest market share overall. Apple typically reports product revenue rather than unit shipments, making third-party estimates an indirect measure of market activity.

Note: Due to the political or social nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Political News forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Related Roundups: MacBook Air, MacBook Pro
Related Forums: MacBook Air, MacBook Pro

Popular Stories

wwdc sans text feature

Apple Rumored to Announce New Product on February 19

Thursday February 5, 2026 12:22 pm PST by
Apple plans to announce the iPhone 17e on Thursday, February 19, according to Macwelt, the German equivalent of Macworld. The report, citing industry sources, is available in English on Macworld. Apple announced the iPhone 16e on Wednesday, February 19 last year, so the iPhone 17e would be unveiled exactly one year later if this rumor is accurate. It is quite uncommon for Apple to unveil...
maxresdefault

Apple Shows Off a Key Reason to Upgrade to the iPhone 17

Saturday February 7, 2026 9:26 am PST by
Apple today shared an ad that shows how the upgraded Center Stage front camera on the latest iPhones improves the process of taking a group selfie. "Watch how the new front facing camera on iPhone 17 Pro takes group selfies that automatically expand and rotate as more people come into frame," says Apple. While the ad is focused on the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max, the regular iPhone...
Apple Logo Zoomed

Tim Cook Teases Plans for Apple's Upcoming 50th Anniversary

Thursday February 5, 2026 12:54 pm PST by
Apple turns 50 this year, and its CEO Tim Cook has promised to celebrate the milestone. The big day falls on April 1, 2026. "I've been unusually reflective lately about Apple because we have been working on what do we do to mark this moment," Cook told employees today, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. "When you really stop and pause and think about the last 50 years, it makes your heart ...
Finder Siri Feature

Why Apple's iOS 26.4 Siri Upgrade Will Be Bigger Than Originally Promised

Friday February 6, 2026 3:06 pm PST by
In the iOS 26.4 update that's coming this spring, Apple will introduce a new version of Siri that's going to overhaul how we interact with the personal assistant and what it's able to do. The iOS 26.4 version of Siri won't work like ChatGPT or Claude, but it will rely on large language models (LLMs) and has been updated from the ground up. Upgraded Architecture The next-generation...
iOS 26

iOS 26.3 and iOS 26.4 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone

Tuesday February 3, 2026 7:47 am PST by
While the iOS 26.3 Release Candidate is now available ahead of a public release, the first iOS 26.4 beta is likely still at least a week away. Following beta testing, iOS 26.4 will likely be released to the general public in March or April. Below, we have recapped known or rumored iOS 26.3 and iOS 26.4 features so far. iOS 26.3 iPhone to Android Transfer Tool iOS 26.3 makes it easier...

Top Rated Comments

Pitogyro Avatar
11 months ago
MacBooks are simply irresistible with Apple Intelligence.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
bluespark Avatar
11 months ago

MacBooks are simply irresistible with Apple Intelligence.
I asked Siri whether I should buy a new MacBook and she added pickles to my shopping list.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jayryco Avatar
11 months ago
Because people have realized that they are peak laptop at insane value and no windows laptop comes close - especially the M4 range.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Steve121178 Avatar
11 months ago
The M4 range is their best ever line-up. No reason to not upgrade or buy a Mac if you're in the market for new hardware.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
JitteryJimmy Avatar
11 months ago
I recently purchased a new M4-based MacBook Pro far outside my normal upgrade cycle.

The following risks led to my decision:

* wild tariffs
* the possibility of unavailability of key materials, leading to shortages
* inflation risks
* political disruption in Taiwan

Furthermore, I could still sell my existing and perfectly awesome M1 for good money to a local buyer.

I concluded that any loss related to me "upgrading earlier than normal" was negligible.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
IIGS User Avatar
11 months ago

MacBooks are simply irresistible with Apple Intelligence.
Tim Cook like typing detected....
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)