After the market's first-ever contraction in 2022, global shipments of wearables are to reach 442.7 million devices this year, growing 6.3% year over year.

Declining demand and challenging macro-economic conditions have caused IDC to further lower its forecast for the worldwide PC and tablet markets.

Global shipments for traditional PCs fell below expectations as 67.2 million PCs were shipped in Q4 2022, down 28.1% from the prior year.

The downturn in 2022 was brought on by difficult year-over-year comparisons following the market's dramatic growth during the first two years of the pandemic.

Worsening macroeconomic conditions have led to a reduction in the outlook for global smart home device shipments according to IDC.

IDC has revealed its outlook for augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) headsets for the remainder of 2022 and beyond. 

Shipment volumes remain well above pre-pandemic levels when PC volumes were largely driven by commercial refreshes.

New research from IDC through IDC Tracker has revealed the wearable technology market has faced a challenging second quarter.

Tumultuous times are ahead for the PC and tablet markets, according to a new forecast from the International Data Corporation.

The IDC says global shipments of traditional PCs dropped by 15.3% year over year, to only 71.3 million units in the second quarter of 2022.

Preliminary data from IDC's Worldwide Quarterly Personal Computing Device Tracker has found tablet shipments reached 38.4 million units during Q1 2022, a year-over-year decline of 3.9%.

Shipments of traditional PCs, including desktops, notebooks, and workstations, declined 5.1% in the first quarter of 2022, but exceeded earlier forecasts.

"Consumer need for PCs in emerging markets and global commercial demand remained strong during the quarter with supply being a gating factor."

The worldwide market for smart home devices such as smart TVs and speakers has risen 10.3% year over year in the third quarter of 2021, according to new figures from IDC.

Shipments reached 86.7 million units in the third quarter of this year, marking the sixth consecutive quarter of growth.

IDC's latest report notes a 32.3% increase in global wearables shipments in the second quarter of 2021.

The appetite for wearable devices remained strong in the first quarter of 2021 (1Q21) even as volumes retreated from record fourth quarter levels, IDC finds.

"Sales of smart home devices have remained fairly resilient during the global COVID-19 pandemic."

IDC states worldwide shipments of wearable devices reached 153.5 million in the fourth quarter of 2020, a year-over-year increase of 27.2%.

Worldwide smartphone shipments could achieve a 5.5% growth rate this year - and PC shipment rates will also grow 18.2%.

The ongoing surge in PC demand is expected to continue as work from home and remote education needs mix with the holiday spending season. 

Virtual reality is starting to mature and reach a broader audience. 

While this recent surge in PC and tablet demand still has some legs, IDC expects the PCD market to decline in 2021 as businesses and consumers continue to deal with the economy uncertainty brought on by the pandemic.

"The strong demand driven by work-from-home as well as e-learning needs has surpassed previous expectations and has once again put the PC at the centre of consumers' tech portfolio."