Gartner: Global Chromebook Sales Will Jump 27 Percent in 2015

A newly released report Thursday by market research firm Gartner predicts global ​Chromebook sales to climb 27 percent in 2015 over the previous year.

Gartner Principal Analyst Isabelle Durand told CRN that Chromebook's popularity stemmed from low prices, ease of use and Google's launch of free apps for teachers, like Google Classroom, to entice the education vertical.

"The growing success of Chromebooks in the education sector has been reinforced with the launch of Google Classroom, a free tool that is part of Google Apps for Education," she said.

[Related: Education Week 2015]

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According to the study, the global Chrome OS-powered laptops' shipments will rise from 5.73 million in 2014 to 7.29 million this year.

But the U.S. had the biggest market for Chromebooks in 2014, and Gartner said it expects Chromebook sales in North America to shoot up from 4.8 million in 2014 to 6 million in 2015.

"I'm surprised it's not more," said Erik Stromquist, chief operating officer of Portland, Ore.-based system builder CTL, about the predicted rise in sales. "Customers like Chrome because of the ease of use and the Google ecosystem that goes along with it. The devices are great too -- they're well-designed and they use Google apps, which makes the system very popular with education in particular."

In addition to low prices, around or below $200, Stromquist said, customers also are looking for more powerful processors and larger screen sizes. For example, while many screen sizes are typically 11.6 inches, there is a surge in demand for larger, 14- or 15-inch screens, he said.

According to Stromquist, CTL started its Chromebook business two years ago. Fast forward to now, and the Chromebook business is approaching 30 percent of CTL's revenue, he said.

Of Stromquist's clients interested in Chromebooks, more than 90 percent come from the education vertical market.

That's no surprise, as Gartner's study highlighted that education is the primary market for Chromebooks and represented 72 percent of the global Chromebook market in 2014.

Dave Monk, CEO of Google partner ArcSource Consulting of Berkeley, Calif., said Google's Apps for Education, which Google offers free to schools with additional support at no cost, are an added incentive for schools to invest in the devices.

"We're seeing a good deal of interest in the education space and home student space," said Monk. "The kids like [Chromebook] and it has great battery life. It's an excellent combination with the Google Apps Education Edition, and I think it's a brilliant play to offer free Google Apps to schools in the country."

The Chromebook market is still fairly new, as the first model was released in mid-2011, and Gartner's study found that there are low Chromebook purchases among SMB and vertical industries in the business segment.

"Chromebook is a device that can be considered by SMBs or new startup companies that do not have the resources to invest too much in IT infrastructure," said Gartner analyst Durand in a release. "Chromebooks will become a valid device choice for employees as enterprises seek to provide simple, secure, low-cost and easy-to-manage access to new Web applications and legacy systems, unless a specific application forces a Windows decision."

However, Google's Chromebook for Work suite of office applications targets the business sector, and partners like Stromquist hope the Chromebook market will soon be boosted by interest from corporate and enterprise clients.

"I think the ecosystem will continue expanding and put a dent in Microsoft's world," he said. "The devices continue to get better and better. A lot of the development is on Google's side making the platform richer and a deeper part of everyone's everyday life. I don't see this market slowing down anytime soon."

PUBLISHED MAY 21, 2015