PDA shipments decline 18% in 2003

Shipments of pocket-sized computers declined 18% in 2003, despite moderate gains in Q4, according to industry research. For the full year, the total handheld market decreased to 10.4 mil units, off 17.9% from the previous year's shipments of 12.6 mil units, research firm IDC said in its Worldwide Handheld report. In the fourth quarter, shipments rose to 3.4 mil units, up 3.2% from the previous year, and up 52.7% from Q3.