Total shipments of mobile devices, including PCs, smartphones, tablets, e-book readers and data communications (including mobile cards and personal routers), in Japan totaled 13.6 million units in the first quarter of 2013, an increase of 9.7% from a year earlier, according to IDC.
While the PC market declined by 4.6% in the quarter, sales of tablets enjoyed a 187.2% on year growth to slightly more than two million units. The tablet growth was largely driven by the availability of inexpensive new tablets and huge sales incentives from mobile operators to boost shipment volumes of LTE-enabled (4G)models.
Smartphone shipments grew 4% on year to 6.8 million units in the first quarter of 2013, IDC added.
Smartphone shipments are expected to reach 30 million units in 2013, as forecast, but the annual growth rate will be slower given the maturity of this segment. In comparison, the tablet market will continue to see rapid expansion over the next few years thanks to a growing demand for inexpensive tablets, noted Michito Kimura, a senior market analyst at IDC Japan.
Smartphone shipments are forecast to surpass 37 million units in 2017, while tablet shipments are expected to reach 9.7 million units during the year, Kimura added.
