IDC Reports 'Massive Deceleration' in 2014 Tablet Market

full year of decline in Apple iPad shipments, IDC said Tuesday. The slowdown for the iPad along with the overall category isn't "a surprise,” said Ryan Reith, IDC program director, citing stretching tablet life cycles that resemble those of PCs more than smartphones. In the early stages of the tablet market, device life cycles were expected to mirror those of smartphones at two to three years, Reith said, but instead tablet owners are holding on to tablets typically for more than three or four years. The drivers of longer-than-expected tablet life cycles are legacy software support for older products -- especially within iOS -- and the increased use of smartphones for a variety of computing tasks, he said. In addition, shipments of 2-in-1 devices have been modest, despite advancements in the category, and are expected to reach 8.7 million units this year, accounting for just 4 percent of the combined tablet/2-in-1 market, Reith said. IDC attributed sluggishness in 2-in-1 products to “consumer hesitancy around the Windows 8 platform.” There’s “a lot of pressure on tablet prices,” said Jean Philippe Bouchard, IDC research director-tablets, noting “an influx of entry-level products" that "serves Android really well.” Tablet makers are trying to offset price pressure by focusing on "larger screens and cellular-enabled tablets,” Bouchard said. Factors that could affect upcoming tablet shipment totals include industry reaction to Windows 10, Google’s moves in the category with Android and Chrome OS and Apple's rumored product line expansion, he said. Android tablet/2-in-1 shipments for 2014 are estimated at 160 million, up 16 percent year-over-year, and will command nearly 68 percent of the market, IDC said. The iPad will account for 65 million shipments, down 13 percent, comprising 28 percent of the market, IDC said. Windows tablets tallied 11 million shipments for just under 5 percent market share, it said.