IDC reported a decline in tablet and Chromebook shipments in the fourth quarter even as both grew for all of 2021.
Chromebooks suffered by far the most in the fourth quarter as component shortages cut into supplies of the devices. IDC said vendors were prioritizing components for Windows tablets due to their higher price tags, which suppressed Chromebook shipments on a global scale.
IDC’s tallies show Chromebooks declined by 64% in the fourth quarter over a year earlier reaching 4.8 million. Meanwhile total tablet shipments declined by 12% for the quarter, reaching 46 million units, the second time of a decline since the pandemic began.
For all of 2021, tablet shipments were nearly 169 million, up by 3.2% from 2020, the market’s highest level since 2016. Chromebook shipments were up 13% for the year, reaching 37 million.
Demand for tablets was up as demand for virtual learning, remote work and media consumption increased during the pandemic. However, shipments began to decelerate in the fourth quarter as peak demand has declined across many countries, IDC said. Overall, 2021 a “great year for the tablet market,” said Anuroopa Nataraj, a senior analyst at IDC. Nataraj predicted tablet shipments in the near future will remain above pre-pandemic levels as virtual learning, remote work and media consumption remain important for users.
Similarly, the initial demand for Chromebooks in the U.S. and Europe has been satiated, while emerging markets are seeing continued growth.
The top five tablet companies in 2021 were Apple (34%), Samsung (18%), Lenovo (10%), Amazon (10%) and Huawei (6%). Huawei was the only company in the top five to see a decline in growth, with a reduction of 32% over 2020.
The top five Chromebook companies in 2021 were HP (28%), Lenovo (22%), Acer (17%), Dell (15%) and Samsung (9%).