According to research by Deloitte, tablet sales may have already passed their peak in popularity among consumers.
In its technology, media and telecommunications predictions for 2017, Delloitte predict that tablet sales will drop by 10% in 2017 to 165 million units globally.
They cited both the increased smarts built-into modern smartphones and the improvements made in the form-factor of notebooks and laptops has sapped consumer excitement and interest in what tablets offer.
Deloitte found that in Australia, the tablet was only the preferred device for the 45-54 age range and the 65 plus range when it came to playing games.
As a result, Deloitte is predicting that global household adoption of tablets will reach a plateau at a substantially lower level than other consumer electronic devices.
“We think there’s a natural limit to what you can do on the device and it hasn’t found its killer app,” Deloitte senior partner Clare Harding said.
A similar downturn for the tablet market was suggested in November’s IDC numbers.
According to those numbers, the Australian tablet market slid almost 18% on the previous year in 2016.
While every company producing a tablet will likely be affected by the trend, Apple in particular could be put in a difficult spot.
Their iPad division slipped 6% in units shipped last year and if that could prove a major liability for the company if it continues to struggle amid falling demand for their flagship iPhone.
