The
popularity and anticipated growth in the tablet market has set the portable
consumer device world in a global tizzy, or so it would seem. New In-Stat
research indicates that this tablet frenzy isn't quite as global as one would
think, as only three regions—North America, Asia/Pacific and Western
Europe—will be responsible for 91 percent of all tablet unit shipments in 2015.
"There
is obviously strong potential for tablets, as there has been with other mobile
electronic devices. One key difference, however, is that the commercial market
also represents a potential revenue opportunity for tablet OEMs," says
Stephanie Ethier, senior analyst at In-Stat. "Usage models and user
requirements will differ in the commercial market, but as the overall tablet
market becomes more defined, the opportunities for tablets within business
markets will become more apparent."
Recent
research findings from the company also reported that, at over 129 billion
units, portable media players (PMPs) represented the largest number of portable
device units shipped in 2010. The e-reader market will remain primarily a North
American market, with 58 percent of e-reader units shipped into North America
in 2015, the report noted. Personal navigation device (PND) shipments will peak
in 2012 and then decline steadily over the remaining forecast period, while
research indicated handheld game console shipments will grow approximately 20
percent over the next year as a result of the Nintendo 3DS launch.
The
research report, “2Q11 Portable and Computing Connected Device Database,”
provides unit shipment forecasts by device and by region for a variety of
portable consumer electronic (CE) devices popular today. This Excel-based
report is part of an initiative to provide CE suppliers and manufacturers alike
with more details, the report noted.
Devices
include e-readers, handheld gaming consoles, digital radio receivers,
edutainment toys, personal navigation devices, audio-only MP3 players and
personal media players. Recent additions to this quarterly deliverable are
market breakouts for digital photo frames and tablets. The regions included in
the report are North America, Latin America, Western Europe, Eastern Europe,
Middle East/Africa and Asia/Pacific.
Computer Networking 
