Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google


Snapshot: PCs and Tablets Continue to Plummet

The forecast for PCs and tablets continues to get gloomier.

According to market research firm International Data Corporation (IDC), worldwide, shipments of tablets and traditional PCs combined will drop 15.2% from last year.

Traditional PCs (desktops, laptops, and workstations) will fare better than tablets and are expected to decline to 250.8 million shipments this year, down 14.1% from last year. By 2027, IDC predicted, PCs will hit 289.2 million units, a 3.6% compound annual growth rate (CAGR).

Tablets will decline 17.1% this year to 134 million units. That figure will reach 135.8 million in 2027, a sluggish CAGR of 0.3%.

Combined PC and tablet shipments are predicted to grow from 384.8 million units this year to 403.1 million in 2024.

"As the global economy has continued to struggle, consumers have tightened spending and commercial buyers are delaying purchases," said Jitesh Ubrani, research manager for IDC Mobility and Consumer Device Trackers. "Consumer demand is at risk of perishing as they revert to pre-pandemic habits where the PC wasn't at the center of their daily computing needs, However, commercial buying is expected to ramp up during 2024 and will help the PC market grow beyond pre-pandemic levels."

Further details can be found in IDC's Worldwide Quarterly Computing Device Tracker and Mobility and Consumer Device Tracker.

About the Author

David Nagel is the former editorial director of 1105 Media's Education Group and editor-in-chief of THE Journal, STEAM Universe, and Spaces4Learning. A 30-year publishing veteran, Nagel has led or contributed to dozens of technology, art, marketing, media, and business publications.

He can be reached at [email protected]. You can also connect with him on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidrnagel/ .


Featured

  • cloud infrastructure diagrams and security alerts

    Microsoft Expands Protections and Controls for Sovereign Cloud

    Microsoft is introducing new tools within its sovereign cloud offerings designed to give organizations tighter control over where their data resides, who can access it, and how critical systems operate, especially in light of AI becoming a bigger part of enterprise infrastructure.

  • Technology Digital Data Abstract Background

    Sophos Launches Tool for Shadow AI Defense

    Unauthorized artificial intelligence tools and agents are creating security risks for organizations as AI adoption increases, according to cybersecurity company Sophos.

  • young professional with human features blended with data streams

    Perkins V Isn't Preparing Students for an AI-Driven Workforce

    Today's middle school students' future careers will be transformed by artificial intelligence, automation, robotics, advanced manufacturing, biotechnology, cybersecurity, and technologies that may not yet exist. Our career education policies need to prepare them for that reality.

  • Graduation cap with a lightbulb on the book and icon learning in the classroom.

    Department of Education Issues New Guidance on Education Technology and Screen Time

    In an Aug. 20 Dear Colleague Letter from Kirsten Baesler, assistant secretary of the United States Department of Education's Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, ED outlines new guidance to frame the national conversation around the educational value of technology in schools.