The Rise of the Mobile Empire

April 2015 1You Back, Union Jack? 1
The Rise of the Mobile Empire
Are tablets the new workstation? IT pros weigh
in on the future of mobile tech…
April 2015 | #ModernWorkforce
Free IT reports on today’s hottest tech topics and trends.
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April 2015 3
TABLE OF CONTENTS
00
Desktop Dynasty: A
Kingdom in Decline01
The Uprising of the
Mobile Workforce02
Future Ruler:
Tablettodius the Great
PAGE 04
PAGE 10
PAGE 16
04
Embrace the Age
of Mobility
PAGE 20
05
The State of the
Tech Kingdom
PAGE 06
Mobile Device Olympics
(Benefits & Trials)03
PAGE 12
Details on
the Data
PAGE 22
06

4 The Rise of the Mobile Empire: Are tablets the new workstation? IT pros weigh in on the future of mobile tech… | #ModernWorkforcev-
vweWS2003EO
00
The State of the
Tech Kingdom
 The citizens of TechVille are predicting the
dawn of a new workday: “Desktops are obsolete.”
“Tablets will replace laptops.” “You can do real
work on smartphones.” Truth, exaggeration, or
wishful thinking? Spiceworks got to the heart of
the matter by asking IT pros what’s really going
on in the workplace.
A new era is upon us, but will mobile truly
reign supreme? Who’s using which technologies
for what? What are the biggest obstacles in
managing such a diverse collection of form
factors and platforms? The masses have
spoken – learn what IT pros envision for the
future of the workstation…

April 2015 5
SURVEY INFO
We asked over 300 IT pros in the U.S. to tell us
how the rising number of laptops, tablets, and
smartphones in the workplace is impacting the
way work gets done. They let us know which
devices their users have, how they’re being used,
and how they expect these trends to
shift in the future.
IT pros also cited some challenges that keep them
from using mobile devices for everything – things
like cost, screen size, and OS compatibility. And
they gave us a closer look at the opportunities
and benefits they think mobile devices will bring
to their organizations. The highlights:
1. The desktop kingdom, while still notable,
is showing signs of decline. Desktops are
often still the primary device for people
who work from a dedicated workspace or
who rely on lots of computing power to
get that work done. But desktop usage is
not expanding for most organizations.
2. What IS growing is the mobile workforce, as
evidenced by the escalating number and
variety of devices people use at work. Many
rely on tablets and smartphones in addition
to desktops – and some have replaced their
desktops entirely. IT pros predict the mobile
empire will continue to spread its reach.
3. The device most likely to replace desktops in
the future? Tablets. But IT pros have some
caveats before they’re willing to look at
tablets as true desktop successors.
The consensus: Employees use devices in different
combinations based on the work they do within
their organizations. They also said that device use
varies by the type of apps used. And while some
say their organizations already take advantage of
the flexibility offered by tablets and smartphones,
a full passing of the torch to mobile devices is still
in progress.
Where’s your organization on the mobile device
spectrum? Do you still rely on desktops for
most of the heavy lifting (as you’re looking
for ways to integrate mobile devices)? Or do
you have an increasingly mobile workforce
that’s driving the need to replace desktops
entirely? How do the features and functionality
of mobile devices fit with the applications you
use and the larger demands of your business?
Read on for a closer look at how and why U.S.
IT pros are rolling out the red carpet for mobile
devices in their organizations.

KEY FINDINGS

vweWS2003EO
01
Desktop Dynasty: A
Kingdom in Decline
 When it comes to devices in the workplace,
the landscape can quickly turn into a chaotic
tech arena. The vast majority of IT pros say
their organizations have a company-issued
device policy, but more than half also allow
employees to bring their own devices to work.
Let the mayhem commence! IT pros say that
on average, 63% of employees use desktops
as their primary workhorse, while 30% pri-
marily use laptops – but just 5% primarily
use tablets or smartphones.
Average Percent of Employees Using Each Device as a Primary Device
63%
30%
2%
3% 2%
Desktops
Laptops
Smartphones
Tablets
Don’t know

April 2015 7
Device Policies Supported by Organizations
With the crowd roaring for mobile, high desktop
usage may seem surprising. But the findings
suggest those who primarily rely on desktops
work in dedicated workspaces and in roles like
accounting, finance, HR, and customer support.
Of the organizations surveyed, almost 90% report
that their accounting and finance teams use desk-
tops, but only 39% report these same teams
having laptops.
Less than a third of these number crunchers
reportedly use smartphones for work tasks,
and only 7% use tablets. Other heavy desktop
users are those who need access to high-per-
formance computing to do their work, like IT.
This makes sense given the amount of time these
specific roles spend crunching data with spe-
cialized software that demands lots of screen
real estate and high computing performance.
However, the fact that you can now dock both
laptops and tablets for a more desktop-like
experience – including multiple monitors
and full-sized keyboards – should continue to
narrow the gap between desktop and mobile
devices. In other words, the tried and true
chariot is getting smaller… and motorized.
56%
22%
85%
4%
Bring your
own device
Choose your
own device
Company
issued
Other

vweWS2003EO
Devices Used in Organizations for Business Purposes
Multiple device selections permitted
Accounting/Finance
General staﬀ/
Faculty
87%
Desktops Laptops Tablets Smartphones
IT
84%
HR/Operations
Executive/
Management
Development/
Engineering
Marketing
Sales
Research/
Development
Legal
Field service
83%
76%
75%
65%
54%
50%
Other
39%
37%
31%
21%
39%
35%
88%
38%
40%
75%
44%
39%
46%
27%
20%
50%
7%
12%
62%
7%
15%
41%
14%
12%
21%
10%
5%
28%
27%
25%
73%
28%
29%
58%
25%
28%
36%
16%
10%
41%
19% 12% 6% 9%
Customer service/
Support
Top departments using each type of device

April 2015 9
Despite the continued need for specific types
of users, desktop use is stagnant. Fifty-five
percent of IT pros say their company’s desktop
usage has plateaued over the last three years,
while 25% say they’re relying on them less
and less.
And while they expect to keep using desktops
in the near future, most plan to increase their
use of mobile devices.
Change in Device Usage Within the Past Three Years
Projected Change in Device Usage Within the Next Three Years
Tablets 14%
2%
1%
3%
Tablets 14%
55% 25%17%
5% 4%33%58%
66% 25% 8%
73% 11%
Laptops
Smartphones
Desktops
No change Decreased Don’t knowIncreased
1%
4%
6%17%
2%
75%
62% 31% 6%
47% 41% 8%
15% 49% 35%
Tablets
Smartphones
Laptops
Desktops
1%
No change Decrease Don’t knowIncrease

vweWS2003EO
02
The Uprising of the
Mobile Workforce
All hail the new mobile regime… well,
sort of. The biggest driver behind the use
of mobile devices: More workers than ever
now reach for the convenience of tablets
and smartphones to stay productive and
connected on the go.
While 66% of organizations currently use
desktops alongside laptops, tablets, and
smartphones, roughly a third are replacing
at least some desktops with mobile devices.
In that sense, the mobile phenomenon really
does signal the dawn of a new age.

How Organizations Use Mobile Devices in Relation to Desktops
Mobile devices used in conjuncton with desktops
Mobile devices are replacing some desktops
Mobile devices are replacing most desktops
Mobile devices are replacing all desktops
Don’t know
66%
22%
8%
3% 1%

April 2015 11
Highly mobile employees – from IT pros and
executives to sales teams and field service staff
– may have desktops, but also rely on laptops.
They make heavy use of smartphones and tab-
lets as well. In fact, more IT pros have laptops
(88%) than desktops (83%)… and many also use
smartphones (73%) and tablets (62%) for work.
Mobile usage is also on the rise across the rest
of the organization, particularly when it comes
to tablets.
In the last three years, 73% of organizations
have seen an increase in tablet usage, 66%
have increased smart phone use, and 58%
have increased use of laptops.
Now that we’ve seen who is using mobile
devices in the workplace, let’s take a closer
look at why they’re using them – along with
the challenges and benefits managing these
devices present for IT pro gladiators.

vweWS2003EO
03
Mobile Device Olympics
(Benefits & Trials)
As the tech civilization grows (and moves), so does the challenge of supporting a wider vari-
ety of form factors and platforms in the workplace. Some software/app workflows are easy to
conduct on mobile and other devices already in use in the organization, but others…less so.

Top Challenges Experienced When Supporting Multiple Types of Devices
65%
62%
59%
54%
52%
Software/app compatibility
Device conﬁguration
Device compatibility
Security compliance/requirements
End-user policy enforcement

April 2015 13
More than half of IT pros surveyed believe mobile
devices will eventually conquer antiquated desk-
tops – but those who disagree cite issues such as
cost, usability, screen size, and performance.
For instance, when we asked respondents to rate
how easy it is to search the Internet and handle
documents on different devices, almost all of them
found desktops and laptops easy to use for all of
these workflows.
Most found it easy to use tablets for searching the
Internet, viewing documents, completing online
forms, and sharing documents. But some found
tablets difficult to use for document creation,
editing, and storage, and few found it easy to use
smartphones for much beyond online searches
and basic communication.
One thing to note: While storage on mobile devices
might be a drawback today, it may become less of an
issue as cloud storage is more widely adopted.
Ease of Use for Workflows by Device
Respondents used a ranking scale from 1 to 5, with percentages of easy to very easy reported below
97% 98% 96% 96% 97% 98% 99%
96%
78%
96% 95% 93% 94%
96% 96%
71%
40%
56%
51%
28% 26%
63%
41%
25%
33%
23%
10% 9%
Searching the
Internet
Viewing
documents
Completing
online forms
Sharing
documents
Saving/Storing
documents
Creating
documents
Editing
documents

vweWS2003EO
In fact, 73% of organizations surveyed stated
they’d be unlikely to use a smartphone as a
primary device. Why? Most say they’re too small
– in this case, size does matter (and a tiny screen/
no keyboard is definitely… an issue). Others say
smartphones don’t run the applications and
software they need to do their work.
How do tablets rank? Here, the numbers get
interesting. More than three-quarters of respon-
dents would be likely to consider tablets as a
primary work device – but only IF they packed
enough power to perform critical tasks.
Likelihood of Using Tablets or Smartphones as Primary Devices
But enough about the frustrations – what
about the benefits? IT pros who think mobile
devices are likely to replace desktops offer up
a wide range of reasons including mobility
(naturally), flexibility, convenience, OS support,
cloud and SaaS, docking, enhanced perfor-
mance, and lower price points.
Mobile devices are also expanding their territory
into basic office productivity tasks that used
to be the exclusive realm of desktop royalty.
Employees run word processing, spreadsheet,
and presentation software on laptops and
increasingly on tablets – as well as commu-
nication apps, file sharing, and storage.
They use smartphones largely for communi-
cation (email, calendar, IM, text, VoIP/UC, and
web conferencing) and for sharing and storing
files via applications like Dropbox, Google
Drive, Box, and more.
“It’s all about mobility and flexibi-
lity. People aren’t just working
from their desks anymore, and
they need tools that will allow
them to be productive wherever
they are.”
– IT pro survey respondent
76%
Organization is somewhat to very likely to use tablets as primary work devices
for at least some workers
27%
Organization is somewhat to very likely to use smartphones as primary work
devices for at least some workers

April 2015 15
Types of Professional Software/Applications that Run on Each Type of Device
Basic office productivity
Communication
95%
File sharing/Storage
80%
Economic or financial
HR/Operations
Custom/Proprietary
Customer service/
Relationship mgmt
Media & entertainment
creation
Industry/Vertical
specific
Educational
Engineering
79%
78%
73%
73%
64%
64%
Software engineering
59%
57%
41%
41%
89%
79%
71%
49%
54%
43%
53%
51%
41%
44%
32%
32%
41%
52%
43%
7%
15%
10%
17%
19%
14%
14%
21%
6%
29%
58%
39%
2%
8%
5%
11%
14%
8%
6%
10%
3%
39% 32% 4% 4%
Advanced commercial
Scientific 28% 21% 6% 2%
Top software/applications that run on each type of device

vweWS2003EO
04
A new leader has its sights set on the crown. Half of IT pros think mobile devices will com-
pletely overthrow desktops in the future – and most believe tablets will likely triumph (even
over laptops)! But they don’t see big change right around the corner: less than a quarter
expect to see complete desktop replacement within the next five years, while 31% say it
will take 5-10 years, and 29% envision this change ten years or more down the road. In
other words, mobile will carpe diem… eventually.

Future Ruler:
Tablettodius,
The Great

April 2015 17
Likelihood of Mobile Devices Replacing Desktops Entirely in the Future
Mobile devices include laptops, tablets, and smartphones
Projected Amount of Time When Mobile Devices will Replace Desktops Entirely
Asked of those who believe it’s at least somewhat likely to happen
“ …Our employees already use
and prefer the tablets we provide,
and use their laptops for quotes
and content creation. [If vendors
can make] these devices fully – IT pro survey respondent
48%
30%
10%
8%
4%
Not at all likely
Somewhat likely
Likely
Very likely
Extremely likely
Within the next 3 years
Within the next 3-5 years
Within the next 5-10 years
Beyond the next 10 years
Don’t know
9%
14%
31%
29%
17%
capable of easily creating
content, I see no need for a
laptop or desktop for 90% of
our employees’ work tasks.”

vweWS2003EO
IT pros also have some caveats to their pre-
dictions – and some fairly strong preferences
about which OS platform they’d want in order
to view tablets as eventual desktop successors.
Nearly half would prefer Windows, 31% would
prefer Google Android, and 20% would prefer
Apple iOS. According to the survey, IT pros look
to Windows for manageability, to Android for
affordability, and to iOS for security.
“We probably need two more gen-
erations of mobile computing
hardware before there is feature/
performance parity with desktops.
Then you’ll need 2+ refresh cycles
to replace legacy desktops.”

April 2015 19
Preferred OS Platform if Smartphones or Tablets Replaced Desktops
Smartphone and Tablet OS Perceptions
49%
31%
20%
Microsoft Windows
Google Android
Apple iOS
41%
Microsoft Windows Google Android Apple iOS
Easiest to manage Most secure Best value
9%
74%
17%
52%
23%
25%25%
34%

20 The Rise of the Mobile Empire: Are tablets the new workstation? IT pros weigh in on the future of mobile tech… | #TBD#dvvweWS2003EO
05
If you’ve been wondering exactly how
mobile devices fit into your arena (a.k.a.,
workplace), we hope this report gives you
some useful information to consider. Based
on responses from the IT pros we surveyed,
mobile devices are rising both in demand and
usefulness, and it’s worth it to work through
the challenges of incorporating them into your
IT infrastructure. The reward is the flexibility
and convenience of devices that can be easily
used away from the office to not only check
email and search online, but also to dock on-
site for more intensive tasks.
However your organization uses mobile tech
today, we urge you to continue looking for
ways to match mobile to the way your organi-
zation functions – and vice versa.
As vendors continue to refine and expand
the form factors, compatibility, and power
of laptops, tablets, and smartphones, mobile
devices will thrive and revolutionize the way
employees navigate the workday. Best part:
You’ll be positioned to take advantage of all
the benefits these devices have to offer as
you seamlessly adapt… to the grand new
mobile regime.

Embrace the Age
of Mobility
“We are nearly there now, and I
can only see us going further
in the future.”

vweWS2003EO
06
You’ve just read Spiceworks’ version of data
gone spicy: Our answer to humdrum data. We
tackle the tech issues of today… and what’s
coming soon to a server room near you. And
we deliver it all with more originality and
spice than your typical run-of-the-mill reports.
Drawing from a user base of more than 6 mil-
lion IT pros, it’s a glimpse into tech you can’t
get anywhere else. This research in particular
was conducted in February 2015.

Details on the Data
Region
100%
United States

April 2015 23
Industry
Company Size
12%
IT service
provider
11%
Manufacturing
10%
Education Non proﬁt
10%
Healthcare
9% 7%
Government
6%
Finance
17%
1-19 employees
20-49 employees
50-99 employees
100-249 employees
250-499 employees
16%
20%
23%
11%
13%
500+ employees
This report was sponsored by Samsung Business.
As a global leader in enterprise mobility and information technology, Samsung Business provides a diverse
portfolio of enterprise technologies including smartphones, wearables, tablets, digital displays, hospitality TVs,
printers and medical diagnostic equipment. We are committed to putting the business customer at the core of
everything we do by delivering comprehensive products, solutions and services across diverse industries including
retail, healthcare, hospitality, education and government. For more information, please visit Samsung.com/
business or follow Samsung Business via Twitter @SamsungBizUSA.

vweWS2003EO
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