Apple's iPad further dominates with 68% share of tablets shipped
Apple retained the lion's share of the tablet market in the second quarter of 2012, dominating with a 68.2 percent market share.
Apple's strong performance handily beat the second-place tablet maker, Samsung, which took 9.6 percent of the market with 2.4 million units shipped, according to IDC. Apple actually improved its market share from the second quarter of 2011, when it accounted for 61.5 percent of tablets shipped.
Coming in third in the second quarter of 2012 was Amazon, as the company was estimated to have shipped 1.3 million Kindle Fires, giving it 5 percent of the market. Asus came in fourth with 855,000 units shipped and 3.4 percent, while Acer took fifth with 385,000 units and 1.5 percent.
In all, IDC estimates that 25 million tablets were shipped in the second quarter of 2012, of which Apple accounted for just over 17 million. The overall tablet market grew 66.2 percent year over year, behind Apple's 84.3 percent growth from the same span in 2011.
"Apple built upon its strong March iPad launch and ended the quarter with its best-ever shipment total for the iPad, outrunning even the impressive shipment record it set in the fourth quarter of last year," said Tom Mainelli, research director, Mobile Connected Devices. "The vast majority of consumers continue to favor the iPad over competitors, and Apple is seeing increasingly strong interest in the device from vertical markets--especially education.

"While iPad shipment totals are beginning to slow a bit in mature markets where the device saw early traction, growth in other regions is clearly more than making up the difference."
IDC has predicted that the tablet market will become more competitive in the second half of 2012, with the recent launch of Google's Nexus 7 and Microsoft's forthcoming Surface tablets. However, the research firm said users may also be simply overwhelmed and confused by the number of devices available on the market.
"If anything, there's a real risk that people will have too many options from which to choose this holiday season," said Bob O'Donnell, IDC program vice president for Clients and Displays. "Consumers baffled by the differences between Amazon and Google versions of Android, or Windows 8 and Windows RT, may well default to market leader Apple. Or they may choose to remain on the sideline for another cycle.
Apple's strong performance handily beat the second-place tablet maker, Samsung, which took 9.6 percent of the market with 2.4 million units shipped, according to IDC. Apple actually improved its market share from the second quarter of 2011, when it accounted for 61.5 percent of tablets shipped.
Coming in third in the second quarter of 2012 was Amazon, as the company was estimated to have shipped 1.3 million Kindle Fires, giving it 5 percent of the market. Asus came in fourth with 855,000 units shipped and 3.4 percent, while Acer took fifth with 385,000 units and 1.5 percent.
In all, IDC estimates that 25 million tablets were shipped in the second quarter of 2012, of which Apple accounted for just over 17 million. The overall tablet market grew 66.2 percent year over year, behind Apple's 84.3 percent growth from the same span in 2011.
"Apple built upon its strong March iPad launch and ended the quarter with its best-ever shipment total for the iPad, outrunning even the impressive shipment record it set in the fourth quarter of last year," said Tom Mainelli, research director, Mobile Connected Devices. "The vast majority of consumers continue to favor the iPad over competitors, and Apple is seeing increasingly strong interest in the device from vertical markets--especially education.

"While iPad shipment totals are beginning to slow a bit in mature markets where the device saw early traction, growth in other regions is clearly more than making up the difference."
IDC has predicted that the tablet market will become more competitive in the second half of 2012, with the recent launch of Google's Nexus 7 and Microsoft's forthcoming Surface tablets. However, the research firm said users may also be simply overwhelmed and confused by the number of devices available on the market.
"If anything, there's a real risk that people will have too many options from which to choose this holiday season," said Bob O'Donnell, IDC program vice president for Clients and Displays. "Consumers baffled by the differences between Amazon and Google versions of Android, or Windows 8 and Windows RT, may well default to market leader Apple. Or they may choose to remain on the sideline for another cycle.
Comments
Why isn't anyone buying an Android tablet actually using it? That's what confuses me.
the market share is actually 90% to apple
IDC is a MS lapdog and cooks the book, not only are these results fabricated they also repreent devices in the channel not sold to customer . Ok and the Kindle fire is not a tablet it is an ereader. so it doesn't count . I've used one its almost unusable as a browser.
"shipped" = sold to cutomer for apple
"shipped" for all the others means sold to retailers (in the channel), not to customer.
We've got an iPod situation here.
In which case I can understand an "iPad Mini" to help round out the iPad family and further secure Apple's domination in this area.
Apple currently owns next-gen consumer mass-computing, and given the growing trend of lumping the iPad in with PC share metrics, Apple owns computing, period.
I don't understand. According to market forecasts from last year, iPad market share was due to drop off a cliff after wilting under the barrage of Android tablets. I guess these aren't the Droids we're looking for.
It'll be interesting to see what happens when the Nexus 7 numbers kick in. It's seen a lot of hype, it's widely available and the price is very reasonable. That didn't stop the Kindle Fire from largely failing though.
Quote:
Originally Posted by RichL
It'll be interesting to see what happens when the Nexus 7 numbers kick in. It's seen a lot of hype, it's widely available and the price is very reasonable. That didn't stop the Kindle Fire from largely failing though.
Kindle Fire was complete garbage
Quote:
Originally Posted by Just_Me
Kindle Fire was complete garbage
Let's say there was much room for improvement :-)
Have you used an Android tablet? That's probably your reason
So far this year I've seen maybe one Samsung tablet being used out in the wild, far more Kindles (no Fire's though) and countless of iPads.
Who the heck buys the Samsung tablets? Oh right, only the ones that lives in basements that no one ever wants to venture down into... makes sense now.
Of course, all the iPads Apple ships are actually sold to consumers. What percentage of the other tablets are? Talk about a misleading statistic.
Android tablets shipped
Minus Android tablets just sitting in storage
Minus Android tablets just collecting dust on store shelves
Minus Android tablets returned by disappointed buyers
Minus Android tablets bought, kept, but collecting dust due to lack of full-scale quality apps*
= Android tablets are currently like Kindles: something cheap to read and watch certain things on (but without iTunes’ video and music selection!) and play some games (but not the thousands of great ones that are iOS only)
* ArtRage, GarageBand, Procreate, Inkpad, Pages, Numbers, iMovie, Keynote, Textastic, iDraw, iTunes U, OmniGraffle, iPhoto, Bento, Omni Outliner, Diet Coda, Intaglio, Freeform, TouchUp, iTeleport, ReBirth. Where are apps like these for Android? Not, “well, here’s SOME kind of app for this,” but a truly tablet-level experience and productivity? I can think of only one: Photoshop Touch. Others may exist, but can they equal the selection I’ve listed—which in fact only scratches the surface?
Microsoft's Surface is vapor ware. It doesn't exist. How can the writer include market share number by mentioning products not even on the market. Today, as far as I know, no one has even tested one beyond Microsoft. Yet, it is going to take over the world. Excuse me
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ronbo
Of course, all the iPads Apple ships are actually sold to consumers. What percentage of the other tablets are? Talk about a misleading statistic.
Probably eventually, but they're not sold out here in my neck of the woods (Central Florida). Take a look in your local Walmart's electronics dept display case next time you pass by. At least in this area they seem to have a pretty healthy stock of iPads on hand.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Gatorguy
Probably eventually, but they're not sold out here in my neck of the woods (Central Florida). Take a look in your local Walmart's electronics dept display case next time you pass by. At least in this area they seem to have a pretty healthy stock of iPads on hand.
Right, I do see iPads in stores very often, which is good: Apple has a serious problem when that’s not the case. But having “stock on hand” in certain stores does not mean an item is failing to sell: 10 iPads in stock, sold within hours or days, then replaced by 10 more, is not the same as 10 Samsung tablets under an inch of dust (except the one sold and returned) with 100 more in the back and 1000 in a warehouse!
Quote:
Originally Posted by nagromme
Right, I do see iPads in stores very often, which is good: Apple has a serious problem when that’s not the case. But having “stock on hand” in certain stores does not mean an item is failing to sell: 10 iPads in stock, sold within hours or days, then replaced by 10 more, is not the same as 10 Samsung tablets under an inch of dust with 100 more in the back and 1000 in a warehouse!
Agreed. I don't think anyone in his right mind would claim there's any competing (?) tablet approaching iPad sales. But sold for Apple doesn't mean it's in a consumer's hands. It simply means someone paid for it (or is almost certainly going to) and it's very often a reseller/Telco, tho a consumer may not be that far behind to take it off their hands. Too many think sold means to an end-user.
And yeah I know, Apple gives out estimates of channel inventory as supplemental information during their investor calls. And yes I know that competitors don't typically do that. And yeah I know that competitors typically don't have a chain of company stores for direct consumer sales.
Ever since I started visiting this site I feel strange I don't have an iPad.
I have yet to see a non-iPad tablet in the wild.
OTOH, where I live, Apple dominates. Every time I go to the coffee shop, for instance, there are 8-10 people with laptops, almost all of which are MacBooks/Pros/Airs. So, I doubt that my situation is necessarily indicative, but I'm still waiting to see an Android tablet.
Originally Posted by xmiku
Ever since I started visiting this site I feel strange I don't have an iPad.
It's okay. There's no touchscreen-compatible version of Huddler, anyway.