Global tablet shipments are set for a steep decline in the 2015 first quarter, according to Digitimes Research.Digitimes has forecast global tablet shipments will decline 30 per cent sequentially in the quarter to 52.15 million units.
The growing popularity of large-screen smartphones is eating into iPad market share, Digitimes noted, with shipments of iPad devices to reach 13.1 million units, decreasing 40 per cent sequentially in the quarter.
The forecast comes following the release of International Data Corporation (IDC) data showing worldwide tablet shipments in the 2014 fourth quarter recorded a year-on-year decline for the first time since the market’s inception in 2010.
The IDC found shipments of tablets and 2-in-1 devices totalled 76.1 million in the quarter, representing a decline of 3.2 per cent.
White-box tablet maker shipments will likely decline 26.6 per cent sequentially to 18.5 million units, Digitimes has forecast, while shipments of new Windows-based tablets are still limited.
