Research house IDC lowered its forecast for tablet device sales, noting the growth of large-screen smartphones (phablets) as well as a slow refresh rate for existing tablet owners.

According to the research firm, some 245.4 million tablets will ship in 2014, down from its previous forecast of 260.9 million units. While this still represents a healthy 12.1 per cent year-on-year growth, it is lower than the 51.8 per cent seen in 2013.

Existing users, particularly those with more expensive tablets from major vendors, are keeping devices longer than expected, and when a new one is bought, the old device is often passed on to another family member – removing a new potential buyer from the pool.

And the rise of phablets is also impacting tablet sales, with Tom Mainelli, program VP for devices and displays at IDC, noting that “the larger screens on these phones are often adequate for tasks once reserved for tablets”.

In the last twelve months, the phablet share of smartphone shipments has more than doubled to 10.5 per cent in the first quarter of 2014 from 4.3 per cent in the first quarter of 2013, representing 30.1 million units.

This is likely to see a shift in the tablet space in favour of larger-screen devices, such as Microsoft’s new Surface Pro 3 “two-in-one” (pictured).

Jitesh Ubrani, research analyst for the Worldwide Quarterly Tablet Tracker at IDC, said: “The shift back toward larger screens will mark a welcome sea-change for most vendors as the average selling price for these devices will remain roughly 50 per cent higher than the average sub 8-inch device”.