According to DisplaySearch, an NPD Group Company, mobile PC shipments will grow from 347 million units in 2012 to more than 809M units by 2017.

The prediction, which is part of the company’s Quarterly Mobile PC Shipment and Forecast Report, tablet PC shipments are expected to grow from 121 million units in 2012 to 416 million units by the end of 2016, which would represent a compound annual growth rate of 28 percent.

Richard Shim, senior analyst at NPD DisplaySearch stated: “While the lines between tablet and notebook PCs are blurring, we expect mature markets to be the primary regions for tablet PC adoption. New entrants are tending to launch their initial products in mature markets. Services and infrastructure needed to create compelling new usage models are often better established in mature markets.”

For now, the notebook PC market will remain the largest part of the mobile PC market making up 60 percent of mobile PC shipments this year, but that percentage is expected to drop to 49 percent by 2017.