Analytical agency Trendfocus released a report that suggests a decline in hard drive shipments in 2022. The largest manufacturers sent 35-36 million drives for sale, which is 42.5% less than a year earlier.
The trend is noticeable in relation to all major suppliers. At Seagate and Western Digital shipments fell by almost half – by 43.7% and 43%, respectively. Slightly less drop in supplies from Toshiba — at 39.3%.
Among the reasons for this fall, market experts cite the “cooling of the global economy”, the adjustment of stocks of products in warehouses, as well as the decrease in demand for corporate cloud storage. Compared to 2021, companies ordered 10-11 million fewer discs.
Delivery volumes vary by drive class. Manufacturers of 3.5-inch HDDs, which are used in video surveillance systems, hoped that the level of consumer confidence would stop declining, and demand for security systems would increase. This did not happen, although in this segment the decline was only 9%.
As for the 2.5-inch drives used in computers and laptops, their shipments even grew by 15% in the fourth quarter. This is explained by the approach of the holidays: equipment is often chosen as a gift.
Analysts TrendForce reported that in 2022, 92% of laptops sold were equipped with an SSD. It is expected that in 2023 their share will become even larger: up to 96%. At the same time, their price is decreasing more and more and will soon be compared with an HDD of the same volume.
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