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NPD: Gadget Sales Soaring

  • CNET, Tuesday, February 14, 2012 12:20 PM

U.S. consumer electronics sales reached $144 billion in 2011, with Apple topping all brands, according to new data from The NPD Group. Additionally, the market research firm found that in-store sales fell by 2.5% in 2011, while online sales jumped by 7%. “The top five categories for electronic spending were PCs, TVs, tablets and e-readers, mobile phones, and video game hardware, which accounted for nearly 60 percent of all sales in 2011,” reports CNet, citing NPD data. Far from a dead market, PCs -- including notebooks and desktops -- generated the most revenue with almost $28 billion, or about 20% of sales.

These numbers, however, are actually down from 2010 by 3%, CNet notes. “This may be accounted for by the growth of tablets and e-reader spending, which nearly doubled in sales to $15 billion in 2011.” In a statement, NPD's Stephen Baker said: "U.S. hardware sales growth is becoming harder and harder to achieve at the broad industry level … Sales outside of the top five categories fell by 8% in 2011 as consumers shifted spending from older technologies to a narrow range of products."

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