In a note to clients -- as reported by "AppleInsider" (http://www.appleinsider.com) -- Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster says a "little cannibalization" of the Mac market by the iPad isn't necessarily a bad thing.

He thinks that that the total tablet market will exceed that of the computer market in terms of units over the next 10 years. And that will benefit Apple since the iPad looks to remain top dog in the tablet market for the foreseeable future.

What's more, Munster points out that with Mac sales continuing to grow and outpace the rest of the personal computer market, Apple hasn't been worried about "cannibalization" of the Mac by the iPad. Combined iPad and Mac sales are currently around $62 billion. Assuming "aggressive cannibalization" of the Mac by the iPad in the years to come, Munster sees the combined segments doubling in sales to $119 billion by 2015.

In calendar year 2012, Munster predicts that Apple will sell 66 million iPads. Though about 100 million tablets will be sold this year, research firm IDC estimates that the PC market will still be considerably larger, with 371 million units sold in 2012, notes "AppleInsider."

Munster thinks this gap will narrow in 2015 when total tablet sales reach 301 million, compared to 484 million computer sales. The analyst feels that tablet sales could overtake notebooks by 2015, and top overall personal computer sales before 2020.