Report: Worldwide Market for Tablets Expected to Grow by 38.6% in 2014

According to Gartner, the worldwide market for tablets is expected to grow by 38.6%, with an estimated 2.7 billion units that will be shipped by the end of this year. This is due to strong demand for such devices in emerging markets, outside of North America.

According to Ranjit Atwal, research director at Gartner, the substitution of desktops and notebooks by tablets will continue at a slower pace this year.  He added that as consumers and businesses are becoming more aware of their own requirements, they will attempt to settle on devices that suit their “usage patterns.” As a result of seeking such alignments, the market is likely to be split between tablets and hybrid devices (detachable or convertible devices).

In addition, worldwide shipments of desktop PCs in 2014 is projected to decline by about 6.6%, year-on-year. Gartner speculates that two out of three traditional PCs (desktops and notebooks) will be renewed with devices of the same product category. The remaining one third will either be replaced with tablets and/or hybrid devices; while, the currents ones will be decommissioned without any direct replacements.

In terms of shipment figures of devices categorized by operating systems, it appears Google is on track to ship over 1 billion Android-based devices in 2014, a 33% year-on-year increment. It was just last year that we reported how Android tablets have overtaken iPads for the first time. Click here for more details pertaining to this latest Gartner report.

(Source: Gartner via GeekWire)

Our articles may contain affiliate links. If you buy through these links, we may earn a small commission.