<p>Analysts said PC vendors already stood to benefit from a hardware refresh cycle next year. Microsoft’s new, supposedly more stable platform should serve as further impetus to upgrade aging machines.<br /><br />Industry watchers say Windows 7 may also have a short-term impact on PC sales to consumers — potentially a slight benefit to consumer-oriented players such as Hewlett-Packard and Acer Inc. But many large businesses will look to 2010 and beyond to buy, preferring to wait and see.<br /><br />The expected refresh cycle that is being touted by the likes of HP and Dell Inc would likely take place regardless of Microsoft’s new offering, analysts say. That’s because of a pent-up need to replace old hardware — a cycle put off as budgets shrank in the downturn. But no one knows how robust it will be.<br /><br />Research group Gartner expects commercial PC sales to rise 10 per cent in 2010 and an additional 13 per cent in 2011, as businesses replace 4- and 5-year-old computers. Early, positive reviews for Windows 7 should give businesses a further nudge.<br /><br />As Vista ends its nearly three years of life on the shelf, only 10-15 per cent of enterprises have migrated, analysts say. The rest remain on the 8-year-old Windows XP.<br /><br />The entire computer food chain, from chipmakers like Intel Corp and Advanced Micro Devices to disk drive makers like Seagate Technology, stands to benefit from a robust push by companies to replace PCs. As PC market recovery takes hold and investors anticipate a bump in corporate spending on computers next year.<br /><br />Goldman Sachs expects IT spending to rise 4 per cent in 2010 to 320.4 million units, reversing an estimated 8 per cent slide this year. It sees PC unit growth of 9 per cent in 2010. Windows 7 is getting a big welcome from PC vendors eager to forget the much-maligned Vista platform.<br /></p>
<p>Analysts said PC vendors already stood to benefit from a hardware refresh cycle next year. Microsoft’s new, supposedly more stable platform should serve as further impetus to upgrade aging machines.<br /><br />Industry watchers say Windows 7 may also have a short-term impact on PC sales to consumers — potentially a slight benefit to consumer-oriented players such as Hewlett-Packard and Acer Inc. But many large businesses will look to 2010 and beyond to buy, preferring to wait and see.<br /><br />The expected refresh cycle that is being touted by the likes of HP and Dell Inc would likely take place regardless of Microsoft’s new offering, analysts say. That’s because of a pent-up need to replace old hardware — a cycle put off as budgets shrank in the downturn. But no one knows how robust it will be.<br /><br />Research group Gartner expects commercial PC sales to rise 10 per cent in 2010 and an additional 13 per cent in 2011, as businesses replace 4- and 5-year-old computers. Early, positive reviews for Windows 7 should give businesses a further nudge.<br /><br />As Vista ends its nearly three years of life on the shelf, only 10-15 per cent of enterprises have migrated, analysts say. The rest remain on the 8-year-old Windows XP.<br /><br />The entire computer food chain, from chipmakers like Intel Corp and Advanced Micro Devices to disk drive makers like Seagate Technology, stands to benefit from a robust push by companies to replace PCs. As PC market recovery takes hold and investors anticipate a bump in corporate spending on computers next year.<br /><br />Goldman Sachs expects IT spending to rise 4 per cent in 2010 to 320.4 million units, reversing an estimated 8 per cent slide this year. It sees PC unit growth of 9 per cent in 2010. Windows 7 is getting a big welcome from PC vendors eager to forget the much-maligned Vista platform.<br /></p>
