US Mac shipments flat, ahead of expected M4 Mac launch

A new market intelligence report suggests that US Mac shipments were flat in the previous quarter, with Apple’s market share slightly declining.

Mac was up just half a percent year-on-year, against an overall average of 3.7%, but it’s likely that many are waiting for the M4 Macs we expect to see announced next month …

Mac shipments flat against PC sector as a whole

Canalys described quarter two as a strong one for the PC industry.

Canalys analysis reveals PC shipments (excluding tablets) to the United States grew 4% year-on-year to 18.9 million units in Q2 2024. Notebook demand was especially strong, with shipments posting an annual growth rate of more than 5%.

The firm says the enterprise sector led the way.

“With IT spending ramping up, large enterprise PC refresh is well underway, with shipments to the segment growing 12% in the latest quarter,” said Canalys Analyst Greg Davis. “While growth for consumer and SMBs was not as high, both segments still finished the quarter with healthy increases of 3% and 6% respectively.”

Estimated Mac shipments were almost flat, rising from 2.31M in Q2 2023 to 2.322M in the same quarter this year. Apple’s market share dipped marginally from 12.7% to 12.3%.

M4 Mac launch likely to boost sales

However, it’s a safe bet that many are now waiting for M4 Mac. Last year’s M3 Macs launched in October, and it’s likely we’ll see the same with the M4 Macs next month.

Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman said that he expects 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models to be first, alongside a new Mac mini. An M4 iMac isn’t expected until later this year or early next. Display analyst Ross Young later echoed this.

For the MacBook Pro, we’re expecting to see M4, M4 Pro, and M4 Max variants. For the Mac mini, we anticipate a significantly smaller form factor, looking not unlike an Apple TV, with M4 and M4 Pro versions. The Pro version may have a later shipping date.

All M4 Macs are expected to start at 16GB RAM for best Apple Intelligence performance, and we’re also likely to see USB-C versions of the Magic Mouse, Keyboard, and Trackpad.

Render: Michael Bower/9to5Mac