Smartphones going up – PDAs on the way out
The PDA is in decline, with more of us pitching for a smartphone, according to research produced by GfK. The first quarter 2007 saw the volume of PDA sales decline by 35%, and value decline by 43%, year-on-year. Total sales of PDAs came to £7m, compared to £19m spent by UK consumers on smartphones.
It’s the acceleration of a steady decline – with smaller and (usually) more stylish mobiles offering functions such as MP3 players, cameras and email and indeed, being subsidised by the mobile operators, it’s increasingly hard for the PDA to compete.
And the one thing that could save them – GPS – is even making the move into smartphones too.
Sandra Bayly, Account Manager GfK states that “We will see a further decline, of approximately 20%, in the PDA market throughout 2007 due to replacement technologies, such as Smartphones and mobile phones. Convergence of technologies into one device, offering solutions such as connectivity, organiser, MP3, Bluetooth, WiFi and camera and voice functionality have negated the need for an additional PDA. Our research indicates that sales of Smartphones will rise by a further 30% in 2007, reaching 920,000 unit sales.”
GfK website
