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By Margaret Kane, 1 November 2002 10:20

NEWS Worldwide handheld shipments dipped more than two per cent in the third quarter compared with the same period last year, according to a revised report from Dataquest. Globally, 2.55 million personal digital assistants (PDAs) shipped in the third quarter, down from 2.62 million in the year-ago quarter. That continues the decline seen in the second quarter. Dataquest released a revised report Thursday after stating earlier this week that worldwide shipments were up 0.9 per cent. The market researcher attributed the change to revised data from Hewlett-Packard. Palm continued to lead the market with 30.6 per cent of the global market in the third quarter, up from 28.8 per cent a year ago. Sony jumped into the number two position ahead of HP. Sony grabbed 13 per cent of the market in the third quarter, up from 3.5 per cent a year ago. HP, meanwhile, saw its share of the worldwide market drop from 12.1 per cent to 11.5 per cent. "Sony has been averaging about one new model launched every month of 2002," Dataquest analyst Todd Kort said in a statement. Dataquest also revised its US figures. Earlier this week, Dataquest said the US handheld market had grown 4.5 per cent in the third quarter from a year ago. But on Thursday, the market researcher said the market had actually slid 1.4 per cent, with shipments falling to 1.2 million units. Sony also leapfrogged HP in the US market, where it has 19.8 per cent of the market, up from 4.1 per cent a year ago. HP's US share dropped to 9.7 per cent from 12.2 per cent a year ago. Palm's lead was stronger in the United States, where it has 41.7 per cent of the market compared with 39 per cent a year ago. The big loser in the US market was Handspring, which saw its 22.5 per cent market share from a year ago drop to 6.6 per cent. Handspring, Sony and Palm devices all use the Palm operating system. Handhelds using Microsoft's Pocket PC operating system, which include HP's devices, continue to see their presence grow in the worldwide market. Microsoft licensees now account for 28.8 per cent of worldwide shipments, according to Dataquest. "After a slow but steady decline, the Palm OS market share appears to have stabilised, but new challenges are on the horizon," Kort said. "Much more competitive pricing from Pocket PC vendors, beginning in the fourth quarter of 2002, will undoubtedly stimulate growth in Pocket PC shipments and allow Palm less breathing room." Kort said that Dell Computer's entry into the market could intensify the battle. Dell plans to launch a PDA in the United States soon. Margaret Kane writes for News.com