The global application processor (AP) market will grow 8.5% in 2016, reaching 1.78 billion units, according to a recent Digitimes Research Special Report. The growth rate in 2016 will surpass the annual growth of 7.9% seen in 2015.
Intel is expected to show the strongest growth among vendors with 25% growth in 2016, as it launches new low-cost 4G solutions. However, Qualcomm will remain the market leader on expected shipments of 430 million units. The US-based vendor is forecast to experience 7.5% yearly growth, with its share remaining at about 24%.
The report, titled "2016 global AP demand forecast" notes that while some traditional AP markets, such as for tablets, will shrink this year, other emerging applications including for automobile electronics, set-top boxes, virtual reality (VR) and smart watches are booming.
Digitimes Research did point out that the AP market will continue being dominated by communication devices. APs shipped with basebands will account for 81% of the market in 2016, up from 77% in 2015.
This article is an excerpt from a Digitimes Research Special Report (2016 global AP demand forecast). Visit our latest Special reports.