IC Insights forecasts cellphone app-processor to grow by 19% in 2014

IC Insights has reported mobile processors in cellphones and tablet computers continuing to provide most of the lift in overall microprocessor sales, but other MPUs used in PCs, servers, and embedded applications are forecast to pull out of a two-year slump and increase 3% in 2014 to $42.5 billion from $41.2 billion in 2013. IC Insights forecasts cellphone application processor sales to grow 19% in 2014 to a record-high $19.3 billion, while tablet processors are projected to climb 35% to a new all-time peak of $4.9 billion. Other findings by IC Insights include : Cellphone application processors are forecast to account for 29% of worldwide microprocessor sales in 2014, while tablet MPUs will reach 7% of the total. Microprocessors used in standard PCs, servers, large computers, and embedded applications are expected to represent 64% of total MPU sales in 2014 (Figure 1). By 2018, cellphone application processors are expected to represent 33% of the total microprocessor sales, while tablet MPUs will be 9% and the large PC/server/embedded segment will shrink to 58%, based on the five-year forecast in the new McClean Report by IC Insights. Revenues for microprocessors in PCs, servers, large computers, and embedded systems fell 2% in 2013 after dropping 6% in 2012. These back-to-back declines were partly a result of PCs being superseded by tablet computer and smartpho...