Ultra-Slim PCs to Account for a Quarter of the Mobile PC Market by 2015

[Cristian_25H]

Ultra-slim PC shipments will grow from 3.4 million in 2011 to 65.0 million by 2015—a quarter of mobile PC shipments—according to the NPD DisplaySearch Quarterly Mobile PC Shipment and Forecast Report. The mobile PC landscape is transforming from a performance-driven market to a convenience-driven market, where easy access to content and usage are the new preferred characteristics.

This fundamental change in preference is most noticeable in the slowing demand for notebook PCs and the increasing demand for tablet PCs. Tablet PC shipments are expected to exceed notebook PC shipment by 2016. Notebook PC players are responding by adopting the features of tablets that consumers have appreciated the most.



"Tablet PCs have offered consumers what they have been requesting from the notebook market for years, instant-on activation, long battery life, and sleeker designs," said Richard Shim, Senior Analyst with NPD DisplaySearch. "These attributes are the basis for enabling greater and easier accessibility to content and services. Ultra-slim PCs are the notebook market's response to tablets and aim to balance performance and convenience."

Ultra-slim PC adoption has been modest to date due to premium pricing and a lack of differentiation from standard notebooks. Prices have gradually decreased and adoption is expected to ramp up in 2013 as new processors aid in the achievement of more convenience-oriented computing.

In addition, maturing ultra-slim PC panel production processes will lower material costs and premium prices. A combination of improvements in thinner glass manufacturing and handling, as well as assembly of panels, will improve yields and lower the cost of panels, one of the most expensive components in an ultra-slim PC.

As part of its continued efforts to follow the development of emerging mobile PC form factors, NPD DisplaySearch has launched a one-time report Ultra-Slim PCs: The Notebook Market's Response to Tablets detailing how the notebook market is re-aligning to offer more convenience-oriented features. The report examines how the evolution of ultra-slim PCs is different from the evolution of the mini-note PC, and why ultra-slim PCs will have a different fate.

NPD DisplaySearch will update the Quarterly Mobile PC Shipment and Forecast Report to cover quarterly shipment tracking and forecasting for ultra-slim PCs, in addition to standard notebook PCs, mini-note PCs, and tablet PCs.

The definition of Ultra-Slim PCs is as follows: notebooks with screen sizes greater than 14" and must have a z-height (i.e. thickness) of less than 21 mm, and notebooks with screen sizes less than 14" must have a z-height of less than 18 mm. Included in the category are notebook PCs fitting Intel's Ultrabook definition, Apple MacBook Air and MacBook Pro with Retina display among others.