Just in time for new Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella’s expected introduction of an Office suite for iPad today, new numbers from Gartner show how business and consumer buying trends are continuing to upend Microsoft’s traditional PC business.
Worldwide shipments of traditional desktop and notebook PCs will decline by 6.6 percent, to 276.7 million units, the research firm said in its updated forecast this morning. Meanwhile, tablet shipments will rise by 38.6 percent, according to Gartner’s projections, topping 270 million in 2014 — getting very close to the total volume of the traditional PC market.
“Tablet substitution of notebooks will start to dissipate from this year onwards as consumers and businesses align the right device with the right usage pattern. As they do this, we will see where dedicated devices (such as tablets), or hybrid devices (detachable or convertible devices), fit in the overall portfolio of devices,” said Ranjit Atwal, Gartner research director, in a news release.
Here’s a Gartner chart showing how it expects the trends to extend into 2015.
And here is how Gartner sees the patterns shaping up among Android, Windows, and iOS/Mac.
Stay tuned for coverage of Microsoft’s event in San Francisco starting at 10 a.m. on GeekWire.
