Tablets to account for 50 percent of overall PC market by 2014

With the popularity and penetration of affordable tablets on the rise, a new report from Canalys estimates that the mobile device will overtake notebook shipments in 2014. According to the report, tablets shipments are estimated to reach 285 million units by next year. This means that the mobile device will account for half the total PC shipments, including that for desktops, notebooks and tablets. Tablet shipments are expected to grow to 396 million units by 2017.

Canalys says the worldwide client PC market grew by 18 percent in the third quarter of 2013, even though desktop and netbook shipments continued to see a steep fall in terms of sales. Tablet shipments, on the other hand, have accounted for 40 percent of the total number in the July-September period of 2013. The report claimed that tablets accounted for 40 percent of PC shipments in the third quarter of this year, less than 500,000 units behind global notebook shipments.

50 percent of overall PC sales by 2014

On the software front, Android-based operating systems will be responsible for driving growth in the market and the report estimates that it will claim 65 percent of the share in 2014, accounting for 185 million units. Samsung, having recorded 27 percent share of Android tablet shipments in the third quarter of 2013, is expected to continue as the top vendor with a strong year-on-year growth. Canalys has also forecasted that Microsoft’s tablet market share will grow from two percent in 2012 to account for five percent in 2014. Analysts, however, feel that the company will need to work out a better app ecosystem and address the co-existence of Windows Phone and Windows RT.

Another major vendor that the report spoke about was Apple. According to the report,the iPad maker has maintained its top vendor position throughout 2013, and the launch of the iPad Air and the new iPad mini should strengthen its position in the fourth quarter. Along with Samsung, the iPad maker is expected to continue to lead the tablet market but at the same time face increasing levels of competition from other players like Acer, Asus, HP and Lenovo. The report also estimated that Apple would see a fall in demand on the PC front in 2014 and beyond.