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    Europe’s PDA boom

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    European sales largely drove a 20.7% increase in  worldwide PDA shipments, as 3.45 million units were shifted in the third quarter of 2005, according to Gartner. The market is on track to reach 15 million units shipped in 2005, surpassing the record 13.2 million units in 2001.

    The Western European PDA market grew 53.4% with 1.2 million units shipped in the third quarter of 2005. Western Europe accounted for 34.2% of worldwide shipments, up from 26.9% one year ago. European growth accounted for approximately 70% of the worldwide growth relative to one year ago.
    “The rapid spread of wireless e-mail and use of GPS-enabled PDAs, which offer most of the functionality of dedicated car navigation systems at a fraction of the cost, is propelling the PDA market to record growth,” said Todd Kort, principal analyst in Gartner’s Computing Platforms Worldwide group.
    “This growth is most noticeable in Europe. In fact, Europe is catching up with North America in terms of usage of PDAs in vertical markets and cellular PDAs.”
    Research in Motion’s (RIM) BlackBerry shipments grew 52.6% in the third quarter, as the company extended its lead as the No. 1 vendor in worldwide PDA shipments. RIM accounted for about half of the worldwide growth from one year ago.
    However, Blackberry PDA shipments were up less than 3%, as RIM’s product mix is shifting a bit more toward its smartphones, which now account for an estimated 18% of RIM shipments.
    HP’s iPAQ shipments declined 20.2% in the third quarter. PalmOne’s PDA shipments declined 36%,resulting in a drop to the No. 3 position.
    The Sidekick II and Pocket PC Phone Edition devices pushed T-Mobile into fourth place, with 305.5% growth.
    Microsoft maintained its position as the leading PDA operating system supplier, as it accounted for 49.2% of worldwide shipments in the third quarter of 2005. RIM secured the No. 2 position with 25% the market.