Led by media tablets and more specifically Apple’s iPad
2, an estimated 37 million ultra-mobile devices (UMDs) will ship into the
United States during 2011, according to ABI Research.
UMDs represent mobile computing devices on a continuum
bordered by laptop PCs and smartphones. The UMD category consists of four
segments: ultra-mobile PCs (UMPCs), mobile Internet devices (MIDs), netbooks, and
media tablets.
The revenue value from vendor shipments of UMDs into US
sales and distribution channels during 2015 is forecast to top $24 billion.
About 75 percent of total UMD shipments in the US during 2011 are expected to
be media tablets.
While the near-term opportunity is all about media
tablets, no UMD segment type has ever sustained a lead for longer than 36
months in any part of the world,” said Jeff Orr, group director, ABI Research.
Netbooks continue to be an important segment, though US
volumes will steadily decline over the next five years from all-time highs of
9.9 million units shipped in 2010. Netbook value will shift from highly
competitive computing and mobile broadband markets, including the US, to
countries where low computing and home broadband penetration offers the
greatest potential for mobile computing.
UMDs are well-positioned inside the edges of the mobile
device landscape, though end-user audiences are driven to newer form-factors on
emotion and promises and less on consumer needs and business roles.
For UMDs in the US to take the PC or smartphone markets
head-on, there needs to be a fundamental shift in buying behavior driven by
lifestyle enhancements and workplace requirements,” Orr added.
By Telecomlead.com Team
editor@telecomlead.com