Worldwide shipments of PCs, tablets, and mobile phones are expected to total 2.4 billion units in 2013, a 9 percent increase from last year, according to new data from Gartner.
Shipments of these devices are forecast to grow even further by 2017 to reach more than 2.9 billion units. But over the next few years, the mix of these devices will "significantly change," as consumers increasingly choose tablets over PCs, the research firm said.
The traditional PC market of desktops and laptops is expected to decline 7.6 percent to 315 million units in 2013, and continue dropping over the next four years as the tablet market grows. Worldwide tablet shipments are predicted to total 197 million units this year, a 69.8 percent increase from 2012 shipments of 116 million units.
"While there will be some individuals who retain both a personal PC and a tablet, especially those who use either or both for work and play, most will be satisfied with the experience they get from a tablet as their main computing device," Carolina Milanesi, research vice president at Gartner, said in a statement. "As consumers shift their time away from their PC to tablets and smartphones, they will no longer see their PC as a device that they need to replace on a regular basis."
By 2017, tablet shipments are expected to reach 468 million units, outpacing PC sales of 272 million, Gartner said. This transition from PCs to tablets is being driven by a recent explosion of low-cost tablets with impressive capabilities, according to Gartner.
"Lower prices, form factor variety, cloud update and consumers' addiction to apps will be the key drivers in the tablet market," Ranjit Atwal, research director at Gartner, said in a statement.
This trend won't just be limited to developed markets, he added. Those in emerging markets who are looking for a companion to their mobile phone will also increasingly pick a tablet instead of a PC.
Meanwhile, mobile phones will continue to dominate the device market over the next four years as smartphones prices drop, driving adoption in emerging markets. Mobile phone shipments are expected to reach 1.88 billion units this year, 1 billion of which will be smartphones, compared with 675 million units in 2012, Gartner said.
In terms of operating system share, Google's Android will remain on top, accounting for nearly 1.5 billion device shipments by 2017. Microsoft's Windows and Apple's portfolio of Mac and iOS devices will duke it out for the second spot, though Windows is expected to lead with 571 million units shipped in 2017 compared to 504 million for iOS and Mac.