Even more interesting, though, is ABI’s research into how much consumers are spending through their devices. According to the firm’s survey, 22% of U.S. tablet owners are spending $50 or more per month through their tablets. 9% of U.S. tablet owners are spending $100 or more per month. ABI points out that these spending levels are far higher than those seen for smartphones.

“Tablets are quickly becoming the go-to transaction screen within the home,” said Jeff Orr, mobile devices senior practice director at ABI.

ABI stated that tablet spending hasn’t yet impacted physical retailers, who are concerned about “showroom” shoppers who use physical stores to shop, ask questions, and compare features before leaving to make their purchase online. The research showed that over half of consumers who shop on tablets had done price checking, used a coupon, and made a location-based search in the past three months.

“The opportunity to keep consumers buying in-store squarely remains with the retailer,” said Orr. “So far, the presence of a media tablet during the shopping experience has not altered the sales channel where consumers finally buy products,”

“Despite uncertainties in Europe and concerns over the U.S. fiscal cliff creating a difficult business environment, we did our best this quarter to achieve strong earnings based on a strategic focus on differentiated and high value-added products as well as our technological competitiveness,” said Robert Yi, Head of Investor Relations at Samsung. “Heading into this year, we are expecting a slow recovery in the component business due to reduced capital expenditures, while competition in the set business will intensify further as demand slows and the mid- to low-end market expands.”

Samsung’s fourth-quarter revenues of 56.1 trillion won ($52 billion) rose on the strength of its mobile device and mobile component sales. Sales of the company’s flagship Android phones, the Galaxy S III and the Galaxy Note, have reached tens of millions of units worldwide. Samsung did mention, however, that sales of DRAM for PCs are down – a sign of the declining PC market itself.

Samsung expects its growth to remain stable throughout 2013, though it cites a “tepid global economy” and increased competition in the mobile device market as possible challenges. The company believes its growth will be driven by its LED TV sets, and expects the market for TVs over 60 inches to grow in 2013.

Most of the core Final Fantasy titles are included in the sale. Final Fantasy, Final Fantasy II, Final Fantasy V, Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VIII, Final Fantasy IX, and Final Fantasy Tactics: War of the Lions for PSP and the PS Vita will cost €4.99/£3.99/AU$7.35. Strangely, Final Fantasy VI will cost the same €4.99/£3.99 as these other titles, but Australians will have to pay more at AU$9.75.

Final Fantasy IV and Final Fantasy Dissidia for the PSP will cost €9.99/£7.99/AU$14.45. The PSP/PS Vita version of Final Fantasy Dissidia will go for slightly less: €8.99/£7.29/AU$13.25.

Bulgaria, Hungary, and Qatar are all exempt from the sale and won’t be getting the sale prices on Final Fantasy games. For specific titles, other countries such as Hungary, Israel, Kuwait, and Turkey will also be left out of the sale.

Early in the year is a good time to catch up on the classics, before big summer titles such as Grand Theft Auto V begin to hit stores. Also, discounts are just what gamers will need to feed their habit this year while simultaneously saving up for the next-generation consoles rumored to be launching this fall.

Gartner’s research shows a 4.9% decline in PC shipments in the fourth quarter of 2012 when compared to the same quarter in 2011. The firm went even further than IDC, all but stating that this is a harbinger of the predicted post-PC era.

“Tablets have dramatically changed the device landscape for PCs, not so much by ‘cannibalizing’ PC sales, but by causing PC users to shift consumption to tablets rather than replacing older PCs,” said Mikako Kitagawa, principal analyst at Gartner. “Whereas as once we imagined a world in which individual users would have both a PC and a tablet as personal devices, we increasingly suspect that most individuals will shift consumption activity to a personal tablet, and perform creative and administrative tasks on a shared PC. There will be some individuals who retain both, but we believe they will be exception and not the norm. Therefore, we hypothesize that buyers will not replace secondary PCs in the household, instead allowing them to age out and shifting consumption to a tablet.”

Much like the IDC report, Gartner shows that the launch of Windows 8 did not re-energize the PC market the way Microsoft may have hoped. Also, HP is once again leading PC shipments worldwide, with Lenovo following close behind.

“The PC market continues to face many headwinds. The launch of Windows 8 had no impact on PC demand, especially as ultramobile products were both limited in supply, as well as being priced too high,” said Ranjit Atwal, research director at Gartner. “The holiday season mostly saw retailers clearing Windows 7 notebook inventory or driving volume of low-end notebooks. Furthermore, the increasing choice of tablets at decreasing price points no doubt became a favorite Christmas present ahead of PCs.”

“Although the third quarter was focused on the clearing of Windows 7 inventory, preliminary research indicates the clearance did not significantly boost the uptake of Windows 8 systems in Q4,” said Jay Chou, senior research analyst with IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly PC Tracker. “Lost in the shuffle to promote a touch-centric PC, vendors have not forcefully stressed other features that promote a more secure, reliable and efficient user experience. As Windows 8 matures, and other corresponding variables such as Ultrabook pricing continue to drop, hopefully the PC market can see a reset in both messaging and demand in 2013.”

The U.S. market in particular took a big hit, dropping 7% compared to holiday 2011. IDC blames the drop on the failure of imagination manufacturers had towards what a good Windows 8 experience would be. However, this could simply be the beginning of the post-PC world that Apple and Microsoft are predicting.

“Consumers expected all sorts of cool PCs with tablet and touch capabilities,” said David Daoud, research director at IDC U.S. Quarterly PC Tracker. “Instead, they mostly saw traditional PCs that feature a new OS (Windows 8 ) optimized for touch and tablet with applications and hardware that are not yet able to fully utilize these capabilities. Despite a generally weak performance, some leading brands managed do to well relative to the market. HP, Lenovo, Asus, and Samsung were among the top performers, taking advantage of some consumer interest in Windows 8, and a push to build up their presence ahead of 2013.”

Despite its recent write-downs and accusations of accounting fraud at Autonomy before its acquisition, HP continues to rank highest on IDC worldwide PC shipment rankings. HP seized on this bit of good news, highlighting the fact that the IDC rankings include the workstation segment rather than just the consumer market. From HP:

IDC announced today that HP maintained the No. 1 position in PC shipments worldwide and in the United States. The IDC analysis also includes the very important workstation segment and therefore represents the most comprehensive analysis of the entire PC market.

We believe HP’s position as the market share leader demonstrates our ongoing commitment to deliver superior PC products and experiences across customer segments.

Meanwhile, Bloomberg is reporting that even HP CEO Meg Whitman knows it will take half a decade to pull the company up from its current downward trajectory.

Rolls-Royce Motor Cars today announced its third consecutive year of record sales. The company sold 3,575 cars last year, the most in its 108-year history. Rolls-Royce claims that it sells more cars in the “ultra luxury market” of cars costing over €200,000 than any other manufacturer.

“My aim at the outset of 2012 was another record. I am delighted to announce our sales for 2012 and to celebrate our 10th anniversary with an historic record result,” said Torsten Muller-Otvos , Chief Executive Officer, Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. “We had an outstanding year in spite of the challenges we faced, and Rolls-Royce now leads the ultra luxury market by some considerable margin. I applaud the Rolls-Royce workforce for their passion and commitment to this Great British brand and we can look forward to future success.”

Rolls-Royce sells vehicles in over 40 countries around the world. In 2012, the U.S. overtook China as the largest regional buyer of Rolls-Royce cars. However, other regions such as the Middle East and Europe saw large sales growth in 2012 as well. Saudi Arabia’s sales in particular were up 63%. The company also opened 30 new or refurbished dealerships, which it now has over 100 of around the world.

“We had another incredible quarter of smartphone sales as the mobile Internet continues to drive strong growth in wireless,” said Ralph de la Vega, president and CEO of AT&T Mobility. “These are the industry’s most valuable postpaid subscribers with average revenues twice that of non-smartphone subscribers. During the quarter, we averaged more than 110,000 smartphone sales a day as customers flocked to our leading portfolio of the latest Android, Apple and Windows devices. Combine that with the nation’s largest 4G network and lightning-fast LTE network that now reaches more than 170 million people and you’ll understand why customers continue to choose AT&T in record numbers.”

Given the record sales AT&T is recording, their fourth-quarter 2012 financial results are likely to make investors smile. Those numbers are scheduled to be released after the markets close on January 24.

AT&T had an exclusive deal as the carrier of the iPhone for years, propelling it to its position as the largest U.S. wireless carrier. Now that the iPhone is sold by other carriers, AT&T has begun experimenting with new revenue options, such as more expensive shared data plans and holding iPhone features hostage.

Back in November, the dates of the Steam autumn sale were leaked by indie developers. The rumored date range was November 21-27, which was mostly correct, though the sale actually ended on November 26. At the time, the developers also revealed Valve‘s plans to start the holiday sale on December 20. It seems that that date has now been confirmed.

Over at the Capcom blog, the publisher has put up a post that claims the Steam holiday sale will start tomorrow, on December 20. The post is mostly a reveal of the current deals Capcom is offering via the PlayStation Network, but a short preview of the Steam sale is also tacked on.

During the Steam holiday sale, Capcom will be offering Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition, Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City, Street Fighter X Tekken, Devil May Cry 3, and Devil May Cry 4 at a “huge chunk off.” Some Nyu Media titles will also be on sale. Nuy Media games are anime-influenced indie titles such as Cherry Tree High Comedy Club and Fairy Bloom Freesia.

(Image courtesy Valve)

Now, it’s quirky online retailer Etsy who’s reporting some impressive Black Friday/Cyber Monday numbers.

“The 2012 holiday season is shaping up to be a huge success for Etsy sellers, affirming that shoppers around the world are hungry for alternatives. Two weeks ago, well before the peak season started, the Etsy community broke its all-time daily record for sales, exceeding the heights we saw last holiday season. On Cyber Monday, the community blew the doors off that high with record-breaking sales, capping an all around chart-busting weekend. More sellers made sales on Etsy on Monday than on any other day in history.”

So if you’re an Etsy seller, it’s likely that yesterday’s online shopping blitz was a very productive day for you.

When you looks at the entire post-Thanksgiving shopping weekend, Etsy says that sales increase 80% year-over-year. The spirit of online buying also invaded more people than ever, as Etsy reports a 90% increase in first-time buyers. 25% of all sales made came from buyers and sellers of different countries.

All of this interest led to 22 million uniques and over 250,000,000 pageviews.

“When you buy a gift from a seller on Etsy, you’re directly supporting people in local communities all over the world while giving something uniquely special and meaningful to someone you care about. At Etsy, you can find the gifts that get them this holiday season, while helping others make a living – and a life – by following their passions,” said Etsy’s Chad Dickerson.

It’s clear that Etsy benefitted from an all-around increase in online shopping this past weekend. comScore reported that ecommerce spending surpassed $1 billion for the first time ever on Black Friday. That’s up 26% from last year. How much online shopping have you done in the past four days?

This huge growth in the smartphone market happened despite a 3.1% decline in the worldwide sales of all mobile phones. 428 million mobile phones were sold in the third quarter of 2012.

“After two consecutive quarter of decline in mobile phone sales, demand has improved in both mature and emerging markets as sales increased sequentially,” said Anshul Gupta, principal research analyst at Gartner. “In China, sales of mobile phones grew driven by sales of smartphones, while demand of feature phones remained weak. In mature markets, we finally saw replacement sales pick up with the launch of new devices in the quarter.”

The unsurprising winners in the race to sell mobile phones were Apple and Samsung, whose combined market share is 46.5% according to Gupta. In particular, Samsung saw a surge in the third quarter, shipping nearly 98 million mobile devices – a 18.6% increase in market share from the third quarter of 2011. Apple increased its mobile phone sales market share by around 1.6%. Interestingly, Chinese manufacturers such as ZTE, Huawei Device, and TCL Communication also saw their market shares increase slightly over the past year.

The familiar losers were also all accounted for in Gartner’s chart. Nokia, RIM, HTC, and Motorola failed to compete well with Apple and Samsung, losing mobile device market share. In particular, Nokia saw a huge decline, with its mobile phone sales declining 21.9% in the third quarter 2012. It lost 4.7% of its global mobile device sales market share, and dropped to seventh place in Gartner’s smartphone sales estimates.