The worldwide tablet market will have seen a massive slow-down in 2014 as iPad shipments decline year-on-year for the first time, IDC is predicting.
Global tablet shipments are expected to grow by just 7.2% in 2014 to 235.7 million units, the research firm said. This compares to a 52.5% growth in 2013.
IDC expects iOS tablet shipments to have fallen 12.7% to 64.9 million, for a total market share of 27.5%. By contrast, Android shipments are projected to have grown 16% to 159.5 million.
Growth is expected to continue to decelerate in the years ahead. By 2018, IDC expects year-on-year growth of just 3.8%, with shipment volumes reaching 285.9 million.
The iPad's share of the market is meanwhile expected to dip to 24.5% over the same period, while Android's share is set to decrease to 64%.
"The tablet market continues to be impacted by a few major trends happening in relevant markets," IDC program director for mobile device trackers Ryan Reith said..
“"In the early stages of the tablet market, device lifecycles were expected to resemble those of smartphones, with replacement occurring every 2-3 years. What has played out instead is that many tablet owners are holding onto their devices for more than 3 years and in some instances more than 4 years.”
While tablet/laptop hybrids have been growing more sophisticated, IDC projects that the devices have captured just 4% of the total tablet plus 2-in-1 market. The firm blamed consumers' suspicion of the Windows 8 OS, which the majority of 2-in-1 devices use.