Link: http://news.ecombizcenter.com

Energized by the debut of the Apple iPad, the global tablet market is poised to move some 50 million units in 2014, according to a new report from In-Stat.

Released Monday, the research firm said the boost to the niche tablet segment also spells significant opportunities to component manufacturers.

Pointing to the iPad as an example, In-Stat said the success of Apple’s device would help inject an additional US$4.1 billion into the semiconductor industry in 2014.

In an earlier report, IDC analyst Richard Shim estimated that Apple would sell 4 million to 5 million iPad devices this year, compared to a forecasted 1.3 million tablet PCs running Microsoft Windows. Of these tablet PCs, 170,000 will be slates; the majority are expected to be convertible laptops that have touchscreens and keyboards.