Electronics Weekly
Gartner device market 2015
For phones the emerging markets are driving the smartphone market upward, with China leading the way.
Taking all these devices combined, 2.5 billion units will be sold in 2015, a 1.5% increase from 2014.
The global PC shipment market is expected to total 300 million units in 2015, a decline of 4.5% year on year. Win 10 is not expected to help this year but might next year.
Ultramobiles (tablets and clamshells) will contract in 2015. Ultramobile shipments are estimated to total 214 million units in 2015, a decline of 5.3% year on year. Tablets will account for 207 million units, a decline of 5.9% from 2014.
“The tablet market is hit by fewer new buyers, extended life cycles and little innovation to encourage new purchases,” says Gartner’s Roberta Cozza, “at the same time, the value of a smartwatch for the average user is still not compelling enough and the impact of these wearables on tablet purchases remains negligible.
The tablet has become a “nice to have” device, and there is no real need for an upgrade as regularly as for the phone.” Gartner analysts also witness users relying more on their smartphones as functionality increases and screen size standardizes at 5 inches. This is affecting the appeal of smaller tablets in markets such as Western Europe and North America, beyond Asia.
“We also expect the tablet market to reach a penetration close to 50 percent of households in mature markets by 2016, which is soon,” adds Cozza.
The mobile phone market growth rate is expected to slow down to 3.3% in 2015. The global market has been affected by a weaker performance in China with fewer first time buyers suggesting the mobile phone market in there is reaching saturation.
