Tablet and camera market is expected to give a major boost to location based services and GPS IC penetration, with GPS shipments reaching 37 million in 2012, finds a new report by ABI research.
According to the report, has witnessed relatively stunted growth thus far, and the growth will be much less than expected.
Camera market is forecast to offer huge potential for LBS, with geotagging emerging as clear driver, the report revealed.
According to ABI Research report, "Location Applications for Tablets, eReaders, Digital Cameras & Handheld Gaming, there are currently over 30 GPS-enabled cameras on the market, and the shipments are expected to exceed 10 million in 2013.
It also added that there is a second wave of new applications emerging around tracking, Maps/POI, and dead-reckoning.
Wi-Fi location feature is now a standard feature in major tablets but the analysts say that it is complementary and does act as a barrier to GPS integration.
ABI Research senior analyst Patrick Connolly said when looked at the adoption of applications on tablets, it is forecast to largely mirror that of smartphones, with a focus on local search, social, enterprise, navigation, and ambient intelligence.
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"Android will lead the way, as ubiquitous location becomes a necessary component," Connolly said
The analysts claim that the launch of the Sony Vita was expected to kick-start the location-based gaming (LBG) industry, featuring Wi-Fi location as standard, and an optional GPS/modem module.
ABI Research practice director Dominique Bonte said irrespective of limited device sales, location-based gaming and community applications still have fundamental barriers concerning critical mass and where and how the device is used.
"As a result, LBG is expected to initially flourish on smartphones, with GPS forecast to remain subdued on gaming devices." Bonte said.
