ABI Research says revenues from ultra-mobile PCs (UMPCs), netbooks, and mobile Internet devices (MIDs) is expected to increase from $3.5 billion in 2008 to nearly $27 billion in 2013.”
This year, retail sales account for only 14% of shipments, while UMDs provided by mobile operators stand at nearly 30%; the balance are sold directly by manufacturers. Over five years, however, that mix will change. Operators currently subsidize UMDs for the sake of their potential services revenue, but by 2013, only 20% will be operator-provided, while retail sales are expected to account for 75%.
In 2013 more than half of all UMDs will have x86 processors at their heart (largely Intel’s Atom), with the balance based on ARM processors. When it comes to operating systems, in 2013 Linux will outnumber Windows devices by two to one across all UMDs, despite the higher return rate for Linux products, says ABI.
In 2008 Intel introduced the first “Atom” processor (code named “Silverthorne“). Their next generation, known as “Moorestown”, is due in mid-2009. Instead of relying on separate modules for Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and other wireless technology, a unified wireless module known as Evans Peak should merge Bluetooth, GPS, and Wi-Fi into a single chipset with the option of WiMAX on the same chip.
Handheld WiMAX devices probably need something like “Moorestown” for practical battery life as well as voice over WiMAX and WiFi handoff.
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