Gartner: Mobile devices to become users' go-to platform

Analyst predicts by 2018 50 per cent of users will use tablets or smartphones before other devices

Mobile devices will soon become the primary device for global content consumption and communication, according to the latest report from Gartner.

The report states that by 2018, more than 50 per cent of users will employ a tablet or smartphone ahead of PCs or other devices for online activities.

In developing nations, smartphones are being adopted as users' exclusive mobile devices, claimed Gartner, while in developed states there is a very high instance of multi-device households, with tablets showing the quickest growth.

Van Baker, research vice president at Gartner, said: "The use pattern that has emerged for nearly all consumers, based on device accessibility, is the smartphone first as a device that is carried when mobile, followed by the tablet that is used for longer sessions, with the PC increasingly reserved for more complex tasks.

"This behaviour will adapt to incorporate wearables as they become widely available for users. As voice, gesture and other modalities grow in popularity with consumers, and as content-consumption tasks outweigh content-creation tasks, this will further move users away from the PC."

The report also stated that the average worldwide price of a smartphone is being driven down and by 2020, 75 per cent of smartphone consumers will pay less than $100 (£64.30) for a device.

This price drop is being driven by a push in smartphone sales from developing countries, where users are converting to utility and basic smartphones. The premium smartphone market is reaching "saturation levels", with demand, mainly driven by replacement users, beginning to slow down.