Canalys reports an 11% YoY drop in Q4 2023 tablet shipments. Apple maintains top position despite 24% decline. (Getty Images)
Global tablet shipments saw a decline of 11 percent year-on-year in the fourth quarter of 2023, totaling 37.8 million units, according to the latest data from Canalys released today. This contributed to a full-year figure of 135.3 million tablets shipped in 2023, marking a 10 percent decrease from the previous year.
Himani Mukka, research manager at Canalys, noted that despite a surge in tablet promotions and bundled offers during the holiday season, the market's downturn persisted. However, Mukka expressed optimism for a rebound in tablet sales in 2024, citing healthier inventory levels and potential government and commercial deployments. New tablet models unveiled by TCL and Lenovo at CES 2024, along with anticipated updates to Apple's iPad lineup, are expected to stimulate the tablet market.
Analyst Kieran Jessop emphasized the importance for tablet vendors to bridge the innovation gap between tablets and other personal computing devices, particularly in integrating on-device AI functionalities. Additionally, Jessop highlighted a growing interest in foldable tablet form factors, which although may have limited shipment volumes due to premium pricing, offer opportunities to showcase enhanced user experiences for various purposes.
Despite a 24 percent decline in year-on-year shipments, Apple remained the top tablet vendor, shipping 14.8 million iPads in the quarter. Samsung secured the second position with 6.8 million units shipped, experiencing an 11 percent annual decrease. Huawei ranked third with 2.8 million units shipped, followed by Lenovo, which saw a 15 percent growth in shipments but dropped to fourth place. Amazon rounded out the top five with a 44 percent annual decline and two million tablets shipped globally.
On a brighter note, Canalys predicts a positive outlook for PC shipments in 2024, estimating a rise to 267 million units, an eight percent increase from 2023. This growth is expected to be driven by factors such as the Windows refresh cycle and the emergence of AI-capable and Arm-based devices.
Ben Yeh, an analyst at Canalys, highlighted the recovery trajectory of the global PC market, anticipating a return to 2019 shipment levels by 2024. Yeh emphasized the transformative impact of AI on the PC industry, with leading players focusing on delivering new AI-capable models to bolster refresh demand, particularly in the commercial sector. He predicted that AI-capable PCs would constitute about 19 percent of total shipments in 2024, with a projected increase in development and adoption as compelling use-cases emerge.
