Mobile consumer electronics device shipments to grow 55-Fold in six years,

[internet news] The wide deployment of broadband is going to kick start shipments of a new class of consumer electronics devices over the next five years, according to a just-released report by ABI Research. Shipments of broadband-enabled consumer electronics (CE) are estimated to increase a whopping 55-fold between 2008 and 2014.

The kind of devices covered in the growth include the emerging class of eBook readers, mobile digital cameras and camcorders, personal media players (PMPs), personal navigation devices (PNDs), and mobile gaming devices. ABI Research forecasts total shipments of these devices will reach 58 million in 2014.

"You're already looking at about 2 million ebook readers connected this year (2009) like the Amazon Kindle and that number will continue to grow," ABI Research senior analyst Jeff Orr told InternetNews.com. Another category set for growth are the PNDs, though those are seeing the most interest in Western Europe, he said. "These PNDs are used by taxi and vehicle fleets and applications where time is money," said Orr, who added PNDs will likely find even bigger markets in Japan, South Korea and Taiwan over the next several years.

Mobile consumer electronics device shipments to grow 55-Fold in six years