Gartner, Inc. (IT) Thursday said worldwide devices - the combined shipments of PCs, tablets and mobile phones - are on pace to total 2.4 billion units in 2013, a 9 percent increase from 2012.
Device shipments are forecast to continue to grow, reaching more than 2.9 billion units in 2017, but the mix of these devices will significantly change over the forecast period, the information technology research and advisory company said.
The proliferation of lower-priced tablets and their growing capability is accelerating the shift from PCs to tablets.
Carolina Milanesi, research vice president at Gartner, said, "While there will be some individuals who retain both a personal PC and a tablet, especially those who use either or both for work and play, most will be satisfied with the experience they get from a tablet as their main computing device."
According to her, as consumers shift their time away from their PC to tablets and smartphones, they will no longer see their PC as a device that they need to replace on a regular basis.
As a result, the traditional PC market of notebooks and desk-based units is expected to decline 7.6 percent in 2013.
Beginning in 2013, ultramobiles will help offset this decline, so that sales of traditional PCs and ultramobiles combined show a 3.5 percent decline in 2013.
Worldwide tablet shipments are forecast to total 197 million units in 2013, up 69.8 percent from 2012.
Of the 1.875 billion mobile phones to be sold in 2013, 1 billion units will be smartphones, compared with 675 million units in 2012, Gartner said.
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