Number of computers growing

The number of computers installed around the world has passed more than one billion units, and is growing at an annual rate of 12%, according to a report released by IT firm Gartner.

The majority of these units are found in mature markets, but the Gartner release says emerging nations will continue to be a hot-bed of growth for PC development.

George Shiffler, research director at Gartner says: “Rapid economic development across emerging markets is not only narrowing the disparity in average living standards, it’s closing the difference in per capita PC penetration between mature and emerging markets.”

Shiffler says the growth rate of computers can be explained by the rapid advancement of components, and so many users simply replacing their old units with newer ones at a greater rate. But he also warns care needs to be taken when disposing of old computers.

“We estimate 35 million PCs will be dumped into landfill with little or no regard for their toxic content. The disposition of retired PCs has become a high-profile issue for many PC vendors, governments and environmental interest groups.”

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