The worldwide tablet market decline is set to continue for the remainder of the year, however, looking further ahead, growth is set to return in 2018 amid the shift to detachable tablets, according to the International Data Corporation (IDC).The IDC forecasts that the tablet market will decline 11.5 per cent this year, with shipments of 183.4 million units, with growth returning in 2018 and continuing through 2020, with 194.2 million tablet shipments “as detachable tablets continue to steal share from traditional PCs”.
By operating system, the IDC forecasts that Android’s market share this year will total 66.2 per cent, dropping to 57.8 per cent in 2020, with iOS to capture a 22.4 per cent market share this year, rising slightly to 22.9 per cent in 2020, with Windows to grow from 11.3 per cent this year to 19.3 per cent in 2020 (see table below).
“Appealing to the commercial audience will be key as detachable tablets aim to take a larger piece of the traditional PC market,” Jitesh Ubrani, IDC Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Device Trackers senior research analyst, commented.
“Windows and iOS already have solid detachable offerings, and with the latest version of Android, Google will also have a horse in the race as they finally offer better multitasking support and added security features.”
Amid the shift towards detachables, the IDC expects larger devices to gain further market share: while 55 per cent of all tablets will be 9″ or smaller this year, by 2020 this is forecast to drop to 40 per cent.
“We see smaller slate tablets being offered at very aggressive price points, leaving little room for revenues outside of a pure volume or platform play like for Amazon, for instance,” Jean Philippe Bouchard, IDC research director, stated.
“The price pressure combined with a healthier demand on larger screen sizes and detachable tablets will eventually result in an increased portfolio offering from tablet and PC manufacturers.”
While detachables are gaining prominence, slate tablets are set to continue to account for the majority of shipments throughout the forecast, with 85 per cent of all tablets shipped this year to be slates, decreasing to 68 per cent by 2020, with most of these destined for emerging markets.
| Worldwide Tablet Share Forecast by OS 2015 – 2020 | |||
| OS | 2015 | 2016 Forecast | 2020 Forecast |
| Android | 67.4% | 66.2% | 57.8% |
| iOS | 23.9% | 22.4% | 22.9% |
| Windows | 8.6% | 11.3% | 19.3% |
| Total | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% |
| Source: IDC Worldwide Quarterly Tablet Tracker, August 30, 2016 | |||
