国际数据公司（IDC）已经发布了第四季度报告，列出了所谓“智能连接设备”的出货量。这个品类的设备包括台式电脑、笔记本电脑、平板电脑和智能手机。

    国际数据公司预计，智能连接设备第四季度总出货量达到了3.677亿部，增长主要集中在平板电脑（2011年上升78.4%）和智能手机（上升46.1%），而台式和笔记本电脑出货量则呈现负增长（分别为-4.1%和-3.4%）。

    今年的调查显示，三星（Samsung）已经超越了苹果（Apple），成为第一。然而，倘若不是去年第四季度苹果新品的大量出货，双方之间的差距就不会像现在这样接近。

    国际数据公司鲍勃•欧唐纳写道：“鉴于2012年初与三星较大的差距，苹果在去年最后一个季度凭借新宠iPhone 5和iPad Mini卷土重来，并将市场份额差距缩小至不到一个百分点。今后的问题在于，苹果的一枝独秀的产品策略是否能够抗衡三星的机海战术。”

    头把交椅的争夺几乎令人无暇他顾，但事实上，“其他品牌”在此次调查中44.7%的份额远超三星（21.2%）和苹果（20.3%）。

    注：我们过去一直十分关注国际数据公司的统计方法，因为这家公司从来没有解释过他们是如何比较苹果公布的销售数据与三星并未公布的出货量。但是，花旗银行（CitiCorp）格兰•杨上周发表的一篇报告甚至让国际数据公司也陷入了困惑。这份报告错误地引用了国际数据公司的数据，目的是为了让苹果的平板销售看起来比实际情况差。国际数据公司的数据显示，2012年第四季度，苹果以44%的市场份额统领着全球平板市场，而不是格兰报告中所提到的38.8%。（财富中文网）

    IDC has issued a Q4 report on shipments of what they call "smart connected devices," a category that includes desktop PCs, notebook PCs, tablets and smartphones.

    Total shipments last quarter came to 367.7 million units, IDC estimates, with most of the growth in tablets (up 78.4% over 2011) and smartphones (up 46.1%), while desktop and laptop PC shipments shrank (-4.1% and -3.4%, respectively).

    Apple (AAPL) lost the No. 1 spot to Samsung in this year's survey, but the race was closer than it might have been if it weren't for the raft of new products Apple shipped last quarter.

    "After falling well behind Samsung early in 2012," writes IDC's Bob O'Donnell, "Apple came roaring back in [the] final quarter of the year thanks to its latest hits – the iPhone 5 and the iPad Mini – and reduced the market share gap to less than a single percentage point. The question moving forward will be whether or not Apple can maintain its hit parade against the juggernaut of Samsung."

    Almost lost in the race for first place is the fact that Others, with a 44.7% market share last quarter, dwarfed both Samsung (21.2%) and Apple (20.3%).

    NOTE: We have been critical in the past of IDC's methodology, given that they never explain how they can compare sales numbers that Apple releases with shipment numbers that Samsung doesn't. But even IDC was mystified by a report issued last week by CitiCorp's Glen Yeung that misquoted IDC to make Apple's tablet sales look worse than they were. According to IDC, Apple led the world in Q4 2012 with a 44% tablet market share, not the 38.8% that Yeung reported.