PC sales doing great

Even with growth in U.S. sales slowing to around 3 percent, overseas gains boosted global first-quarter PC shipments 14.6 percent, according to IDC, and to 12.3 percent by Gartner's count. That's because the U.S. accounts for just 23 percent of global shipments in the first quarter compared with 25 percent a year ago.

"Even if there is a particularly bad U.S. market, it's becoming a smaller piece of the global puzzle," said Bob O'Donnell, an IDC vice president.

IDC estimated Palo Alto, Calif.-based HP's global market share at 19.1 percent and Dell's share 15.7 percent. Gartner estimated an 18.3 percent share for HP, compared to 14.9 percent for Dell.

Framingham, Mass.-based IDC and Stamford, Conn.-based Gartner measure sales differently, and their results usually differ.

The first-quarter numbers beat both firms' forecasts by greater than a percentage point.

"There were a lot of questions about whether the U.S. economy would impact other regions, and clearly the answer was 'No,'" said IDC's O'Donnell.

Portable computers for the consumer market drove much of the global increase, O'Donnell said.