Global shipments of personal computing devices (PCDs) are forecast to decline by 2021, latest Worldwide Quarterly Personal Computing Device Tracker from International Data Corporation showed.
According to the report, PCDs will decline from a total of 435.0 million units in 2016 to 418.2 million units at the end of the forecast period in 2021. This represents a five-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of -0.8 percent.
PCDs comprise of traditional PCs (a combination of desktop, notebook, and workstations) and tablets (slates and detachables).
Traditional PC shipments are expected fall to 252 million units in 2021, a five-year CAGR of -0.6 percent. The outlook has been raised slightly compared to the November forecast.
Adding in detachable tablets would raise 2021 shipments to more than 308 million units with a 2016-2021 CAGR of 1.8 percent.
Continued innovations should lead notebooks to take a higher share in the overall personal computing landscape, up from 36 percent of the total PCD market in 2016 (barely ahead of slates) to being the dominant device by 2021 with nearly 39 percent share. At the same time, slate tablet share declined to 26 percent.
Detachable tablets are also expected to make further inroads, going from 4.9 percent in 2016 to 13.4 percent of the total PCD market by 2021.
