Marketers have sometimes found it easier to reach consumers on devices running the Android operating system compared with Apple, given the open architecture. Android tablet shipments, led by Samsung and Amazon, rose at the expense of Apple in third-quarter 2012, which saw its share slip notably during the quarter, according to International Data Corp.
Apple slipped from 65.5% market share in 2Q 2012 to 50.4% in 3Q 2012. The remaining top five tablet vendors all gained share during the quarter as a result.
- Apple shipped 14 million tablets worldwide in Q3 2012.
- Samsung shipped 5.1 million tablets worldwide, up 115% sequentially and 325% compared with the year-ago quarter.
- Amazon shipped 2.5 million tablets worldwide.
- Asus shipped 2.4 million tablets worldwide.
- Lenovo shipped 0.4 million tablets worldwide.
- Other brands shipped 3.3 million tablets worldwide.
According to IDC, overall, worldwide tablet shipments reached 27.8 million units in Q3 2012. The tablet market grew 49.5% year-over-year in the quarter, and 6.7% during the second quarter of 2012.
Top 5 Vendors, Worldwide Tablet Shipments, Third Quarter 2012 (Preliminary) (Units Shipments are in millions)|
Vendor |
3Q12 Shipments |
3Q12 Market Share |
3Q11 Shipments |
3Q11 Market Share |
3Q12/3Q11 Growth |
|
1. Apple |
14.0 |
50.4% |
11.1 |
59.7% |
26.1% |
|
2. Samsung |
5.1 |
18.4% |
1.2 |
6.5% |
325.0% |
|
3. Amazon.com |
2.5 |
9.0% |
NA |
NA |
NA |
|
4. Asus |
2.4 |
8.6% |
0.7 |
3.8% |
242.9% |
|
5. Lenovo |
0.4 |
1.4% |
0.2 |
1.1% |
100.0% |
|
Others |
3.3 |
12.2% |
5.4 |
28.9% |
-38.9% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
All Vendors |
27.8 |
100% |
18.6 |
100% |
49.5% |
Ryan Reith, program manager, IDC's Mobile Device Trackers, believes Samsung's growth to 18.4% of worldwide market share during the quarter represents the first time an Apple competitor has attained this level of share since the original launch of the iPad.
Apple may continue to lose market share to Google, but the company said Monday that it sold more than 3 million iPads in three days since the launch of the new iPad mini, which supports a 7.9-inch Multi-Touch display, FaceTime HD and iSight cameras.
U.S. local mobile ads will account for $5.8 billion in 2016 -- up from $664 million in 2011, according to BIA/Kelsey. The analyst firm estimates marketers spent $2.7 billion for mobile ads this year.
The rising cost of fiber and cable TV will also have an impact on market share, as more consumers opt in to Internet TV, running on Android's Google TV, and Windows' Xbox 360, while ditching Verizon FiOS and AT&T U-verse. Both consoles have access to the Internet and publishers' sites streaming TV show content. Both support apps allowing consumers to control their respective TV devices with tablets and smartphones.
COMMENTARY: That's great news. More tablet options for the consumer. Although the Apple iPad remains the tablet that all manufacturer's aspire to be, the gap is rapidly closing as Amazon and Sansumg, with their Android-based tablets (see below), continue to rob market share from Apple. In October, 25, 2012, Microsoft formally unveiled its new Surface Tablet, a breathtaking tablet running the new Windows 8 operating system and on June 28, 2012, Google unveiled its new 7-inch Nexus 7 tablet, and just came out with a 10.1 inch tablet as well. It's fantastic that we have all these choices. So how do the top four tablets compare? You be the judge, and don't forget to read the latest consumer reviews.
Click To Enlarge Image
Courtesy of an article dated November 6, 2012 appearing in MediaPost Publications Online Media Daily
This is a great review! Very thorough! Would you consider doing a review of childrens tablets like the Nabi XD? I'll bet that a majority of your readers that are tablet buyers have children that are tablet users and could really benefit from a thorough like yours.
Posted by: Sarah James | 03/10/2013 at 10:52 AM