Global smart connected device (the combination of PCs, tablets and smartphones) shipments grow by 27.1% Y-o-Y during Q3 2012, with shipments reaching a record of 303.6 million units worth $140.4 billion, IDC reports.
The analyst has further positive forecasts for the segment-- Q4 2012 shipments will grow by 26.5% Y-o-Y (or 19.2% Q-o-Q) to 362m units as demand for tablets and smartphones fuels sales during the holidays.
According to the analyst Q4 2012 tablet Y-o-Y growth will reach 55.8%, while smartphone growth should total 39.5%. On the other hand PCs should "decline slightly" on a Y-o-Y basis.
When it comes to vendors, Samsung and Apple continue to dominate the global market, taking over 21.8% and 15.1% share respectively. Lenovo (7%), HP (4.6%) and Sony (3.6%) follow.
IDC expects the global smart connected device to "continue to surge" in the future-- shipments should reach over 2.1 billion units by 2016 with a market value of $796.7bn.
The analyst describes the 2012-2016 period as a "multi-device era," even as the market continues to shift away from PC towards mobile devices. However the cloud eases the purchase and usage of different devices for different situations.