Some Big Shifts in the PC/Tablet/Phone Market

Mobile%20Pic %20Africa%203I don't know if you caught it but there were some big headlines last week as market analytics firm International Data Corporation (IDC) released a report showing that, in the first three months of 2013 (Q1 2013), more smartphones were produced and shipped than feature phones.  This is a big deal!  This is something I still was thinking would be at least another year or more down the road. 

Comparing figures from the previous year the issue takes on an even starker reality.  Feature phone shipments plummeted from 368 million in Q1 2012 to 202 million in Q1 2013.  That is a massive drop in volume!!!  At the same time, smartphone sales increased by 1.4x.

Looking beyond the phone market to the entire mobile market we also see table shipments more than doubling from 18.2 million to 40.6 million between Q1 2012 and Q1 2013.  While exciting you need to consider where that puts tablets in percent of total device sales (see below). Don't ask about PCs, though, as shipments continue to decline for them.

So, looking at device shipments for Q1 2013 we find the following breakdown:

Device                    Shipments      Percent of Total
                                (in millions)     Device Shipments
PCs                            76.3                      14.2%

Tablets                        40.6                        7.6%

Smartphones           216.2                      40.4%

Feature Phones       202.4                      37.8%

(shown graphically in pie chart below)

So, there's some information to help you consider current trends in overall device shipments.  Don't forget, though, to consider installed base as you determine where to target your media outreach efforts (and for that I'll include TVs and Radios too):

Device                    Total in Use End       Percent of
                                of 2012 (Billions)      Total Devices

PCs                                  1.4                           10.9%

Tablets                              0.2                             1.6%

Smartphones                   1.2                             9.4%  

Feature Phones               4.0                           31.3%

Radios                              4.1                           32.0%

TVs                                   1.9                            14.8%

(taken from TomiAhonen Almanac 2013 and Tech Crunch article for tablet stats)

All that said, at the end of the day the most important information you need to know is what devices the people you are seeking to reach are using and how they are using them!  May the Lord guide you and bless you as you prayerfully consider where He may be leading your ministry, hope these facts and figures help in some way.

Q1 2013 Device Sales

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