Abstract
This IDC study presents the five-year forecast for worldwide handheld device shipments. The handheld device market, as currently constituted, will continue to decline as users transition to other devices that meet their needs. Handheld device vendors, hard-pressed to remain within this market, will either decrease shipment volumes or withdraw from the market altogether. Despite this dour outlook, there will remain a group of loyal users and vendors that will keep the market alive, but at a steadily decreasing rate over time. One major consideration for the handheld device market is convergence and how other devices using the architecture of handheld devices, namely portable media devices and mobile Internet devices, have begun to gain salience in the marketplace. IDC is paying close attention to how these factors are playing out and what they mean for the handheld device market.
"In 2007, the market lost a key player - Dell - and other vendors also decided to leave," points out Ramon Llamas, a senior research analyst with IDC' s Mobile Device Technology and Trends team. "This has left a smaller list of players and shipment volumes than in years past. But our conversations with the remaining vendors reveal that they have not given up, and they cite continued demand from their most devoted clients. As such, IDC believes that the market will continue in the years to come."
Table of Contents
- Table of Contents
- IDC Opinion
- In This Study
- Methodology
- Primary Data Sources
- Secondary Sources
- Methodology
- Situation Overview
- 2007 in Review
- United States
- Western Europe
- Asia/Pacific (Excluding Japan)
- Japan
- Rest of World
- Market Developments
- Competition from Rival Devices
- Convergence and Handheld Devices
- Dell Exits the Market, Others Follow
- Shrinking But Loyal Group of Core Users
- Vendor Insights
- Palm
- HP
- Mio
- Fujitsu Siemens Computers
- Dell
- Figure: Worldwide Handheld Device Shipment Share by Vendor, 2007
- 2007 in Review
- Future Outlook
- Emerging Trends
- Continued Exodus of Handheld Device Vendors Is Expected ?
- But Some Will Still Stick Around
- Connectivity Beyond Hotspots: WiMAX
- Forecast and Assumptions
- Worldwide
- United States
- Western Europe
- Asia/Pacific (Excluding Japan)
- Japan
- Rest of World
- Table: Worldwide Handheld Device Shipments by Region, 2007-2012 (000)
- Table: Worldwide Handheld Device Shipments, Revenue, and Average Selling Value, 2007-2012
- Table: U.S. Handheld Device Shipments, Revenue, and Average Selling Value, 2007-2012
- Table: Western Europe Handheld Device Shipments, Revenue, and Average Selling Value, 2007-2012
- Table: Asia/Pacific (Excluding Japan) Handheld Device Shipments, Revenue, and Average Selling Value, 2007-2012
- Table: Japan Handheld Device Shipments, Revenue, and Average Selling Value, 2007-2012
- Table: Rest of World Handheld Device Shipments, Revenue, and Average Selling Value, 2007-2012
- Table: Key Forecast Assumptions for the Worldwide Handheld Device Market, 2008-2012
- Market Context
- Table: Worldwide Handheld Device Shipments by Region, 2005-2012: Comparison of March 2008 and December 2007 Forecasts (000)
- Figure: Worldwide Handheld Device Shipments, 2005-2012: Comparison of March 2008 and December 2007 Forecasts
- Emerging Trends
- Essential Guidance
- Learn More
- Related Research
- Synopsis

