---
title: Something Unimaginable Is Happening in the Gadgets Market
description: A new forecast indicates that our infatuation with shiny new electric devices has hit a plateau. Researchers say that consumers will spend less on laptops, PCs, tablets, and mobile phones in 2015.
authors:
  - name: Brad Tuttle
    role: Senior Editor
    url: https://money.com/author/brad-tuttle/
    bio: Brad Tuttle is a former senior editor at Money with over 10 years’ experience covering a vast number of personal finance topics, including careers, cars, travel, budgeting, investing, insurance, credit cards, consumer psychology, real estate, banking, and shopping and deals.
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published: '2015-07-08T20:45:21.000Z'
modified: '2023-06-09T11:06:46.000Z'
section: Technology
tags:
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  - electronics
  - Gadgets
  - mobile phones
  - pubdesk
  - Shopping
  - Tablets
  - Tech
word_count: 269
canonical: https://money.com/gadget-device-mobile-phone-tablet-sales/
type: Article
source: structured-blocks
---

> **Disclosure:** Money may earn a commission when you click on the products and services below. Opinions are our own, but compensation and in-depth research determine where and how they appear. [Learn more](https://money.com/page/disclaimer/) about how we make money.

![gadget](https://img.money.com/2015/07/gettyimages-150654784.jpg)
*Circle of Technology*

The global love affair with gadgets isn't dying, not by a long shot. But a new study indicates that our infatuation with shiny new electronic devices appears to be hitting a plateau.

This week, the IT research firm [Gartner](http://www.gartner.com/newsroom/id/3088221) released a forecast predicting that for the first time since 2010, there will be a worldwide decline in money spent on gadgets. Globally, the anticipation is that consumers will collectively spend $606 billion on PCs, laptops, tablets, and mobile phones in 2015. That would represent a 5.7% decline from 2014.

The decrease in spending isn't because we're buying fewer mobile phones. In fact, mobile phone purchases are expected to be up for the year: 1.94 billion, versus 1.879 billion in 2014. Yet mobile phone prices continue to fall. So even as we buy more, the dollars collected on those sales aren't as high as one might expect.

The Gartner forecast does call for a net decrease in the sales of [tablets](https://money.com/best-tablet/) and desktop and laptop computers. In particular, PC purchases in western Europe, Russia, and Japan have been falling, "largely due to price increases resulting from local currency devaluation against the dollar," Gartner research director Ranjit Atwal said in a press release.

Looking forward, Gartner is forecasting that the number of mobile phones and tablets sold will rise globally in 2016 and 2017, while purchases of PCs and laptops will keep declining. Total dollars spent on gadgets are expected to rise in 2016 and again 2017 as well. Even so, the anticipated sum of global gadget purchases in 2017 won't match the total from 2014—$627 billion versus $642 billion, respectively.

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