Gartner Sales Estimates Suggests We’re Getting Bored Of New Devices

Sales of smart devices in 2015 are set to miss original predictions as consumer decide not to splash out on new gear, according to Gartner.

The total number of PCs, tablets, ultramobiles and mobile phones is expected to reach 2.4 billion – one precent less than 2014.

This figure is also down from the previous quarter’s forecast of 1.5 percent growth, showing that for a growing number of consumers, the need to have the latest devices is becoming less important.

“Replacement activity across all types of devices has decreased,” said Ranjit Atwal, research director at Gartner. “Users are extending the lifetime of their devices, or deciding not to replace their devices at all.”

Slipping

Gartner’s forecasts also predicted that mobile phones would be the only device category to see an increase in sales in 2015 compared to the previous year, and are set to increase 1.4 percent, with smartphone shipments estimated to increase 14 percent.

Emerging markets in the Asia/Pacific region, including India and Indonesia, have helped to push this growth, recording a 43 percent increase in shipments in 2015, with the Chinese market also continuing to grow 3 percent.

“By 2017, we estimate mobile phone shipments will reach the two billion mark, and smartphones will represent 89 percent of the market,” said Annette Zimmermann, research director at Gartner.

Tablets are also set to see a significant fall, with 192 million unit shipments projected in 2015, down 13 percent from 2014.

“The tablet market is coming under increasing pressure,” said Ms Zimmermann. “Users of tablets with a screen size between 7 and 8 inches are increasingly not replacing their devices.”

The tablet market will be hit particularly hard by the lack of ‘refresh’ buyers, as a new Gartner user survey conducted in June 2015 across six countries found that 44 percent of current tablet users are planning to substitute their tablets with a different device.

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