Tablet Sales Will Surpass PCs in 2013, Continue Taking More Share, NPD Predicts

There are lots of ways to look at predictions of future PC, tablet and smart phone sales, but among the more important implications will happen in emerging markets, where network access historically has been a problem matched only by inability to afford a computing appliance.

“Low-cost tablets are reaching further into emerging regions where notebook PC penetration rates have remained low, resulting in cannibalization by tablet PCs.”” said Richard Shim, senior analyst with NPD DisplaySearch. 

Irrespective of what that means for suppliers of device, tablets will overcome the "cost of a PC" problem. 

Global Mobile PC Shipments, 2012-2017

Source: NPD DisplaySearch Quarterly Mobile PC Shipment and Forecast Report