Worldwide combined shipments of devices (PCs, tablets, ultra-mobiles and mobile phones) are projected to reach 2,4-billion units in 2014 – a 4,2% increase from 2013, according to Gartner.
“2014 will be marked by a relative revival of the global PC market,” says Ranjit Atwal, research director at Gartner. After declining 9,5% in 2013, the global PC market (desk-based, notebook and premium ultra-mobile) is on pace to contract only 2,9% in 2014.
“Business upgrades from Windows XP and the general business replacement cycle will lessen the downward trend, especially in Western Europe,” says Atwal. “This year, we anticipate nearly 60-million professional PC replacements in mature markets.”
The traditional PC market (desk-based and notebook) will follow the same downward trend and is on pace to contract 6,7% in 2014 and 5,3% in 2015.
As with any devices, adoption goes through phases from the early to the late adopter; tablets are currently moving onto the latter part of that curve in mature markets.
Gartner estimates that sales of tablets will see a relative slowdown in 2014 to reach 256-million units, an increase of 23,9% from 2013. Lower demand from users for tablets with smaller screens, some in favour of larger screens, in mature markets, and the shift towards phablets in South-East Asia are slowing global tablet penetration.
“The next wave of adoption will be driven by lower price points rather than superior functionality,” says Atwal.
Sales of mobile phones are expected to reach 1,9-billion units in 2014, a 3,1% increase from 2013. Sales of smartphones, which exceeded those of the rest of the market in 2013, will continue to do well, and Gartner estimates that smartphone sales will represent 88% of global mobile phone sales by 2018 – up from 66% in 2014.
In the operating system (OS) market, Android and iOS are driving the growth with a 30% and 15% increase, respectively, in 2014.
“We expect the announcement of the new Apple iPhone 6 will attract pent-up demand for users who want a larger screen,” said Annette Zimmermann, research director at Gartner. “Windows phones will exhibit strong growth from a low base in 2014, and are projected to reach a 10% market share by 2018 – up from 4% in 2014.”