Apple's Notebook Shipments Grew an Estimated 94% in Q1 2021

Apple shipped an estimated 5.7 million notebook computers in the first calendar quarter of 2021, according to new notebook PC shipping estimates shared today by Strategy Analytics.

macbook air m1 unboxing feature
Mac notebooks include the MacBook Pro models and the MacBook Air models, excluding the Mac mini, Mac Pro, and iMac.

pc notebook strategy analytics shipments
Apple was the number four worldwide notebook vendor, trailing behind Dell, HP, and Lenovo, with all three companies shipping between 10 and 16 million notebooks during the quarter.

Apple's 5.7 million notebooks shipped is up 94 percent from the 2.9 million that it shipped in the year-ago quarter, with the strong growth coming from continued Mac demand as people work from home and begin the transition to hybrid home working models.

Apple's market share for the quarter was at 8.4 percent, up from 7.8 percent last year. Lenovo and HP continue to be market leaders, shipping a variety of PC notebooks running Windows alongside Chromebooks, which saw strong growth in the education sector.

pc notebook market share strategy analytics
Total notebook PC shipments were up 81 percent year over year among all major vendors, but Apple in particular may have seen major growth thanks to the November launch of the M1 13-inch ‌MacBook Pro‌ and ‌MacBook Air‌, both of which vastly outperform prior Intel models without price increases.

Apple will likely sustain its Mac growth as it prepares to introduce even more powerful Apple silicon machines later in the year. Rumors suggest there are upgraded 16-inch ‌MacBook Pro‌ models in the works, plus we're still waiting on a higher-end larger version of the ‌iMac‌. Apple is also expected to introduce a new ‌MacBook Air‌ and a new ‌MacBook Pro‌, but those might not come until 2022.

Popular Stories

maxresdefault

Five Features Coming to AirPods Pro 3

Friday June 27, 2025 10:52 am PDT by
Apple hasn't updated the AirPods Pro since 2022, and the earbuds are due for a refresh. We're counting on a new model this year, and we've seen several hints of new AirPods tucked away in Apple's code. Rumors suggest that Apple has some exciting new features planned that will make it worthwhile to upgrade to the latest model. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Heal...
anker power bank recall

PSA: Anker Recalls Multiple Power Banks Due to Fire Risk

Friday June 27, 2025 4:16 pm PDT by
Popular accessory maker Anker this month launched two separate recalls for its power banks, some of which may be a fire risk. The first recall affects Anker PowerCore 10000 Power Banks sold between June 1, 2016 and December 31, 2022 in the United States. Anker says that these power banks have a "potential issue" with the battery inside, which can lead to overheating, melting of plastic...
Chase Sapphire Reserve Apple Perk Feature

Chase Sapphire Reserve Card Introduces New Perk for Apple Customers

Wednesday June 25, 2025 2:08 pm PDT by
Chase this week announced a series of new perks for its premium Sapphire Reserve credit card, and one of them is for a pair of Apple services. Specifically, the credit card now offers complimentary annual subscriptions to Apple TV+ and Apple Music, a value of up to $250 per year. If you are already paying for Apple TV+ and/or Apple Music directly through Apple, those subscriptions will...
iPhone Car Key WWDC 2025

Apple Announces 13 Automakers Planning to Offer iPhone Car Keys

Friday June 27, 2025 11:42 am PDT by
In 2020, Apple added a digital car key feature to its Wallet app, allowing users to lock, unlock, and start a compatible vehicle with an iPhone or Apple Watch. The feature is currently offered by select automakers, including Audi, BMW, Hyundai, Kia, Genesis, Mercedes-Benz, Volvo, and a handful of others, and it is set to expand further. During its WWDC 2025 keynote, Apple said that 13...
iPhone 17 Pro Blue Feature Tighter Crop

iPhone 17 Pro Launching in a Few Months With These 12 New Features

Thursday June 26, 2025 2:00 am PDT by
Apple's next-generation iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are around three months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices. Apple is expected to launch the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Air, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max in September this year. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models:Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an...
CarPlay Ultra Climate Controls

Here's Which Vehicle Brands Will and Won't Offer Apple's CarPlay Ultra

Friday June 27, 2025 9:52 am PDT by
Apple last month announced the launch of CarPlay Ultra, the long-awaited next-generation version of its CarPlay software system for vehicles. There was news this week about which automakers will and won't offer CarPlay Ultra, and we have provided an updated list below. CarPlay Ultra is currently limited to newer Aston Martin vehicles in the U.S. and Canada. Fortunately, if you cannot...
apple watch ultra 2 new black

Apple Watch Ultra 3 Finally Coming After Two-Year Hiatus

Tuesday June 24, 2025 3:40 am PDT by
Apple will finally deliver the Apple Watch Ultra 3 sometime this year, according to analyst Jeff Pu of GF Securities Hong Kong (via @jukanlosreve). The analyst expects both the Apple Watch Series 11 and Apple Watch Ultra 3 to arrive this year (likely alongside the new iPhone 17 lineup, if previous launches are anything to go by), according to his latest product roadmap shared with...
iPhone 17 Air Size Feature

iPhone 17 Air Screen Protector Reveals a Potential Design Difference

Thursday June 26, 2025 11:05 am PDT by
A screen protector that is allegedly designed for Apple's rumored ultra-thin iPhone 17 Air model has revealed a potential design difference. Based on an image shared today by a leaker known as Majin Bu, the iPhone 17 Air's front camera may be positioned to the left of the Dynamic Island, rather than to the right of it like on iPhone models released over the past few years. It is unclear...

Top Rated Comments

deputy_doofy Avatar
54 months ago
My M1 MBA is just fu@<ing awesome! Funny (and sad) thing is, I bought an i7 MBA in 2020 also, so I was able to directly compare them and can easily conclude that the i7 in the same "class" doesn't hold a candle.

I will say that running iOS apps is mostly gimmicky, but a couple games work ok on it.
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
GuruZac Avatar
54 months ago
No surprise. Apple delivered $999-$1299 laptops that have, practically speaking for most users, 16” MacBook Pro level performance, better battery life. I never thought I would buy a MacBook Air, but I order one because at the cost, it’s a heck of a laptop.
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
rwalle Avatar
54 months ago
At first glance I thought think was great achievement. Then I realized that Lenovo, HP, Acer and "other" all achieved comparable growth. So, nothing to see here.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Okasian Avatar
54 months ago
A superior tactile keyboard with clicky function keys.

A new paradigm in CISC-based processing.

Who’d have thought huh?

A lot of us have been waiting for viable MacBooks since 2015.

(Also Covid)
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jazz1 Avatar
54 months ago
Ha! We've come a long way Apple lovers. Some years ago, one of my duties in higher education was administering exams. The exam software we used was not yet available on Macs. As I was checking a packed exam room I noticed a glowing Apple among the "dull" Dells ;)

I immediately checked out the student who was running a Windows machine cabled to a Mac. He was cheating by overriding the exam software's Wifi block, and using his Mac to access the Internet. That was a big NO, NO! Our tech. department even confirmed this student was accessing the Internet during the exam.

Years later, I was happy to see a sea of glowing Apple logos in the classroom!
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
DaveP Avatar
54 months ago
Or stated differently: Apple's quarterly laptop growth was less than the Other manufacturers category.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)