Apple sold its first 1 million iPads in just 28 days, so its no surprise that market research firm IDC sees the device as driving global adoption of media tablets. According to IDC, worldwide forecasts for media tablet shipments will grow from 7.6 million units in 2010 to more than 46 million units in 2014. In comparison, the report expects 398 million portable PCs to be shipped in 2014.

“The availability of apps unique to media tablets and that differentiate the experience of using one compared with a PC or smartphone will be crucial for driving consumer demand,” said Susan Kevorkian, IDC program director, Digital Marketplace: Mobile Media & Entertainment. “As the category matures and more media tablet-optimized apps become available, IDC expects that media tablets will evolve beyond nice-to-have devices and become necessities for many consumers.”

IDC does make a distinction between media tablets and tablet PCs. A media tablet is defined as a device with a tablet form factor with a 7-inch to 12-inch color display, running a lightweight operating system. A tablet PC is one that is based on x86 processors and run full PC operating systems.