The latest data from ABI Research shows that Apple’s iPad is still the consumer’s product of choice when it comes to tablets — the device category it created. Nevertheless, Samsung is getting closer fast.
Just like the smartphone market, the tablet market is also becoming a two-horse race. Of the 41.3 million tablets sold over the first three months of 2014, 71 % were either Apple or Samsung devices.
Asus, maker of, among other things, the Google Nexus 7 tablet — generally considered the world’s best sub-10-inch tablet running Android — just managed to sell 2.1 million units. This puts it in a distant third place behind Samsung’s 13 million shipments and 16.4 million units of Apple
Anyhow, these early may not be very accurate, but show the progress that Samsung has made over the past 12 months. The company has taken a big 10.8 percent increase in terms of market share (compared to Q1 2013), whereas iPad has slipped by almost the same amount (-10.1%).
But it’s not only Samsung that’s catching on Apple; the Android ecosystem as a whole has finally overtaken iOS in terms of tablets. ABI Research’s figures indicate that 56.3 % of tablets shipped over the first three months of 2014 did so with Android system (Apple’s iOS was on 39.6% of tablets), and Windows 8 or Windows RT was on 4.1 % of tablets. This gives Microsoft a similar share of the tablet market to the one it has in the smartphone market.
Demand for tablets in general appears to be slowing down, but sale of devices with built-in 3G or 4G/LTE connectivity are actually growing. In all, 22 percent of tablets that shipped did so with an embedded modem installed, which, according to ABI is the highest percentage since 2011.
May and June are likely to be busy months in the tablet market. Not only because consumer demand will increase, but also because Microsoft, LG and Samsung are all going to launch new devices between now and the end of June. Microsoft is expected to launch a mini version of its Surface tablet with an 8-inch display in May, while LG has already made public its intention to sell three new devices with a choice of 7-inch, 8-inch and 10.1-inch screens.
Samsung, in the meantime, is inviting the media to a special event on June 12 in New York where it is expected to launch a brand new range, so expect super-slim Galaxy Tab tablets that boast innovative AMOLED screens and some of the same features, such as a fingerprint scanner, found on its current flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S5.
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