Tablet market grow at a steady pace of 7.2% in 2014

Against growth rate of 52.5% in 2013 the global tablet shipment in 2014 saw a steady growth rate of 7.2%.

Also on cards is the first full year of decline in Apple iPad shipments.

Ryan Reith, program director with IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Device Trackers, said: “Many tablet owners are holding onto their devices for more than 3 years and in some instances more than 4 years.”

The two drivers for longer than expected tablet lifecycles are software support for older products, especially within iOS, and the increased use of smartphones for a variety of computing tasks.

IDC in a statement said shipments of 2-in-1 devices are expected to reach 8.7 mn units in 2014, which is 4% of the total tablet plus 2-in-1 market. Consumer hesitancy around the Windows 8 platform, which the majority of 2-in-1 devices are built upon, is one of the reasons for poor uptake of 2-in-1 devices.

Jean Philippe Bouchard, research director for tablets, said: “We also see tablet manufacturers trying to offset this price pressure by focusing on larger screens and cellular-enabled tablets. The next six months should be really interesting.”

The industry reaction to Windows 10; what Google does in this space with Android and Chrome OS; and Apple’s product line expansion will impact tablet growth, said IDC.