The increasing adoption of tablet devices is anticipated to weaken the global PC shipments that are anticipated to drop by 7.8% in 2013, witnessing a negative growth for the second consecutive year, according to a new report from IDC.
The new outlook calls for a more substantial drop of 1.2% in 2014 with shipment volume reaching 333m in 2017, which is less when compared to 349 million PC units shipped in 2012 and a peak of about 363 million shipped in 2011.
IDC Worldwide Quarterly PC Trackers programme VP, Loren Loverde, said as the market develops, usage patterns and devices are evolving.
"Many users are realising that everyday computing, such as accessing the Web, connecting to social media, sending emails, as well as using a variety of apps, doesn’t require a lot of computing power or local storage," Loverde said.
"Instead, they are putting a premium on access from a variety of smaller devices with longer battery life, an instant-on function, and intuitive touch-centric interfaces.
"These users have not necessarily given up on PCs as a platform for computing when a more robust environment is needed, but this takes a smaller share of computing time, and users are making do with older systems."
According to IDC’s latest Worldwide Quarterly Tablet Tracker, tablet shipments are anticipated to rise 58.7% in 2013 to 229.3 million units, up from 144.5 million units shipped during 2012.
IDC Mobility Trackers programme manager, Ryan Reith, said what started as a sign of tough economic times has quickly shifted to a change in the global computing paradigm with mobile being the primary benefactor.
"Tablets surpassing portables in 2013, and total PCs in 2015, marks a significant change in consumer attitudes about compute devices and the applications and ecosystems that power them," Reith said.
"IDC continues to believe that PCs will have an important role in this new era of computing, especially among business users.
"But for many consumers, a tablet is a simple and elegant solution for core use cases that were previously addressed by the PC."
In addition, IDC projects that the average selling price (ASP) of tablets is anticipated to drop 10.8% to $381, while ASP of a PC in 2013 is almost double that at $635.
By 2017, IDC anticipates that tablets with less than 8" in size would capture 57% of global tablet market share, followed by 8" – 11" with 37% and more than 11"with 6% market share.
