What’s the big deal about that? Samsung’s Android-based slate is the second best selling after Apple’s world-beating iPad — other competitors generate a lot of noise, but do not have much in the way of market presence or impact. The lopsided war for tablet dominance — Apple took a 65 percent share last quarter — really boils down to the battle for second place and which of the bridesmaids will catch the bouquet.
In the first quarter of 2012, our favorite fruit company sold 11.8 million iPads, making their eight quarter to date total 67 million. Though many analysts and bloggers pooh-poohed the company’s “lackluster” third-generation tablet, Apple’s 2012 model coupled with a $100 price knockdown for the iPad 2 together have proven to be decisive in terms of both buyer mindshare and units sold or so writes ABI Research in their quarterly tablet market report.
“A pattern similar to smartphones is also occurring in tablets,” says Jeff Orr, group director, consumer research. “Apple and Samsung have demonstrated staying power while other tablet vendors ebb and flow like the tide.”
Yes, Amazon Kindle sales tanked hard following a promising holiday 2011 quarter and rumored product updates have yet to materialize and re-energize the retail giants media slate sales effort.
Attached to the king
An interesting twist in the data, one that’s been repeated by other researchers, is the fact that iPad users, even when they buy the 3G or 4G version, generally stick to Wi-Fi.
“The majority of iPad buyers continue to be satisfied with Wi-Fi wireless coverage,” adds Orr.
ABI adds that Apple has sold by far the largest number of 3G tablets, but doesn’t have the highest attachment rate.
This leaves us with two open questions — can anyone shake mobile from the grip of the Apple-Samsung duopoly and when, oh, when will the carriers offer shared data?
via Loop Insight