Android Tablets to Overtake iOS Tablets this year

Apple’s dominance over the tablet market has been something that most people have become accustomed to. For the past few years the various incarnations of the iPad series have reigned supreme whether you’ve liked it or not. However, according to the latest research by the research firm IDC Android is beginning to take a lead over iOS based Apple tablets. This year, it is expected that Android tablet sales will comprise of nearly 3% more of the market than iOS tablet sales. This is a gap that is expected to be maintained as we move to 2017 where both Android and iOS lose out as Windows and Windows RT tablets grow in popularity.

2012 figures saw Android grab 41.5% and Apple gain 51% so you can see that much of Android’s growth was, and will be, at the expense of Apple’s iOS.

As far as the global trends are concerned IDC have increased the worldwide tablet shipment estimates from 172.4 million units to 190.9 million units for 2013. This is a rather buoyant increase that suggests tablets are doing better than expected despite many other technology sectors, like PC shipments, doing not so well. It begs the question “to what extent is the success of the tablet feeding off the demise of the PC and laptop?” Either way this is a significant increase that is definitely worth keeping an eye on.

IDC claim that one in every two tablets shipped were below 8 inches in size. This is an important characteristic because it shows how smaller, and more importantly cheaper, tablets will be the way forward for the majority of tablet market growth. Google’s Nexus 7 stands out as one of these pioneering sub-8″ tablets that has led to this market trend forming.

As far as Windows 8 goes, IDC were critical and skeptical of Windows 8 RT suggesting Microsoft would be better placed focusing entirely on the Windows 8 operating system for the tablet experience. Windows 8 RT is expected to experience lackluster and sluggish growth at best over the next few years while Windows 8 tablets should do much better – nearly tripling in market share compared to this year. IDC had this to say:

“Microsoft’s decision to push two different tablet operating systems, Windows 8 and Windows RT, has yielded poor results in the market so far. Consumers aren’t buying Windows RT’s value proposition, and long term we think Microsoft and its partners would be better served by focusing their attention on improving Windows 8. Such a focus could drive better share growth in the tablet category down the road.”

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