Mobile device shipments will nearly double by 2014 to a total of 2.25 billion, according to a report released by ABI Research.
The firm said that the mobile devices shipments will reach a total of 1.2 billion in 2009. It includes all categories of wireless devices including cellular handsets, mobile internet devices, netbooks, mobile consumer electronics products and cellular modems.
Michael Morgan, industry analyst at ABI, said: “The next five years will see a shift in the breakdown between types of mobile devices shipped. Today, wireless handsets rule the roost, with other mobile devices accounting for only 40 million shipments and cellular modems only 60 million. While handset shipments did actually decrease between 2008 and 2009 due to the global recession, the other two segments in fact grew very aggressively.”
Handset sales are growing at 4%, while cellular modem shipments are expected to grow by 40% annually and ultra mobile devices by 67%.
Mr Morgan said that the new developments put smartphones in direct competition with a variety of other device segments for consumer’s dollars.
“The convergence period for cellular communications is coming to an end, and now we’re entering a period of divergence. For many devices the technology is already in place, it’s just the business and billing models that need to be built.”
Some handset vendors may need to seek a greater part of their business in the low cost and ultra-low cost segments, while MIDs and netbooks will have to better define their use cases and value propositions. The same will apply to cellular modems, and operator subsidies will also have an important influence on the sale of these devices, the firm added.
