Years of solid growth ahead for consumer and mobile mems market says iSuppli

According to iSuppli, revenue for mems sensors and actuators used in consumer electronics and mobile handsets is projected to reach $1.5billion in 2010, up 22.9% from $1.3bn last year. Unlike most industries, the consumer and mobile mems market did not suffer a decline even at the height of the global economic downturn, and iSuppli analyst, Jérémie Bouchaud believes growth ranging from 17% to as much as 28% will continue over the next four years. MEMS sensors and actuators are employed in a variety of additional sectors, including data processing, automotive and other high value markets such as industrial, medical, wired communications and aerospace defence. Nonetheless, consumer and mobile mems - already among the largest mems markets - is projected to become the biggest mems space by 2014. Here, sensors find their way into everyday devices such as laptops, mp3 players, remote controllers and portable navigation devices. Bouchard said: "In particular, new consumer products will drive existing and future opportunities. The mems accelerometers and gyroscopes used for e-books and slate tablets like the iPad from Apple will amount to $105million in 2014, compared to an almost negligible $3m in 2009." Also helping spur expansion of the consumer and mobile mems market are a number of new devices scheduled for 2010 and 2011. According to iSuppli, these include 3-axis gyroscopes, pico-projectors, and rf mems switches and varactors. iSuppli forecasts that new mems devices will bring an additional $1.3bn by 2014, up from $33m in 2009. Cell phones remain the dominant segment for consumer and mobile mems. In 2010, iSuppli forecasts mems sensors and actuators in mobile handsets to reach $821.4m, making up 53.1% percent of the market. Bouchard continued: "Cell phones will continue to be the largest user of consumer and mobile mems over the next few years, ahead of consumer projectors, laptops and hard disc drives, game controllers and digital still cameras." Accelerometers remain the chief mems device, netting $557.1m in revenue for 2010. "While their use in gaming controllers and cell phones has either reached saturation or is close to doing so, accelerometers will increase their penetration in laptops and netbooks, and are sure to gain greater exposure in booming categories like e-books and slate tablets," Bouchard noted. Other mems devices finishing strongly this year, in descending order, are gyroscopes, BAW filters, microphones and mems based displays for projectors. By 2014, iSuppli predicts that mems displays will leap into third place, pushing microphones and BAW filters into the fourth and fifth spots, respectively.