People keep clamoring for smart connected devices

Buyers are expressing an insatiable appetite for smart connected devices, a category that includes smartphones, media tablets and PCs. Unit shipments of smart connected devices should top 1.1 billion worldwide in 2012, and shipments will expand to reach 1.84 billion units by 2016, according to research firm IDC. The firm further predicts the number of Android-based devices running on ARM CPUs will expand modestly from 29.4 percent share in 2011 to a market-leading 31.1 percent share in 2016, while Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) iOS-based devices will grow from 14.6 percent share in 2011 to 17.3 percent in 2016. IDC said China's mobile operators, which are subsidizing the purchase of 3G smartphones, will be key to the expanded adoption of smartphones in the Asia Pacific region. For more findings from IDC, see this release.