The death of the pc?

According to market research firm Gartner, the proliferation of lower priced tablets and their growing capability is accelerating the shift away from personal computers to devices such as Apple's iPad. "While there will be some individuals who retain both a personal pc and a tablet, especially those who use either or both for work and play, most will be satisfied with the experience they get from a tablet as their main computing device," said Carolina Milanesi, research vp at Gartner. So are we indeed entering a 'post pc' world? According to Gartner, this is not a temporary trend induced by a more austere economic environment; it is a reflection of a long term change in user behaviour. Beginning in 2013, the firm believes ultramobiles will help offset this decline, so that sales of traditional pcs and ultramobiles combined show a 3.5% decline in 2013.