While I can generally agree with the article, there are things missing from it. One is that it’s entirely focused on Google. But Samsung sells a fair number of tablets. It’s estimated, as we don’t know how many smartphones, smart watches or tablets they really sell, as they don’t say in quarterly reports, that Samsung sells between 15 and 25% as many tablets as Apple. We don’t know if Samsung’s tablet sales have fallen in recent years as Apple’s has, something the article also fails to address.
but Samsung does it’s own SoCs, as Apple does. We don’t know exactly what the differences Samsung’s has, as they don’t just use their own. But a big thing here is that Google is apparently getting tired of not having a state of the art SoC. They’ve begun a chip division, hiring away a major designer from Apple, and I suspect, from others as well. We’ll see how that works out, as it will take a couple of years for any result of that to become available. Will they make these for the Android market in general, or just for themselves? Nobody knows.
if we poo poo their SoC before it comes out, just remember that the same thing was said about Apple’s attempt, before that came out.
Samsung have the SoC but not the OS. This is the perfect opportunity for Samsung to take over the tablet market using Tizen. I just don't think Samsung have shown in the past at being very good at software, so this may not actually happen.
Eventually, the Android tablet vendors will need an updated OS. So where is it going to come from?
Google didn't drop tablet support, even if the article's author may have implied as much (heck pretty much stated it as fact) with the way the article was structured. Only Google's own tablets are being discontinued, not Android tablet support.
While I can generally agree with the article, there are things missing from it. One is that it’s entirely focused on Google. But Samsung sells a fair number of tablets. It’s estimated, as we don’t know how many smartphones, smart watches or tablets they really sell, as they don’t say in quarterly reports, that Samsung sells between 15 and 25% as many tablets as Apple. We don’t know if Samsung’s tablet sales have fallen in recent years as Apple’s has, something the article also fails to address.
but Samsung does it’s own SoCs, as Apple does. We don’t know exactly what the differences Samsung’s has, as they don’t just use their own. But a big thing here is that Google is apparently getting tired of not having a state of the art SoC. They’ve begun a chip division, hiring away a major designer from Apple, and I suspect, from others as well. We’ll see how that works out, as it will take a couple of years for any result of that to become available. Will they make these for the Android market in general, or just for themselves? Nobody knows.
if we poo poo their SoC before it comes out, just remember that the same thing was said about Apple’s attempt, before that came out.
Samsung have the SoC but not the OS. This is the perfect opportunity for Samsung to take over the tablet market using Tizen. I just don't think Samsung have shown in the past at being very good at software, so this may not actually happen.
Eventually, the Android tablet vendors will need an updated OS. So where is it going to come from?
Google didn't drop tablet support, even if the article's author may have implied as much (heck pretty much stated it as fact) with the way the article was structured. Only Google's own tablets are being discontinued, not Android tablet support.
When Apple has grown even more, and plays the endgame of ‘winner takes al’, and the very ethical Tim Cook has retired, what will this humongous organization do with all its power? Whenever I buy Apple stuff, and I really own a lot these days, this question haunts me at night.
You need to see someone about that. Somethings amiss when Apple's sales of consumer electronic products causes you to have nightmares about the new Apple Park building taking off and hovering over the planet announcing Eddy Cue is our new overlord.
It's a good article and accurate... But I think it may cause some to become a bit over confident and to overlook an important point: Apple has worked hard on Tablets while Google kind of moved on to Chromebooks.
The Chromebooks mostly stumbled around but more recently have been finding a foot hold in education -- where countless kids are being indoctrinated into in the Google ecosystem of Chrome and GoogleDocs...
And, with 5G in the pipeline, the Chromebooks are likely to get stronger rather than weaker - Conceivably, a LOT stronger...
Has Google done an end-run around Apple? Is Apple preparing for the the possibilities that 5G can/will open up? ... I can't believe that they aren't thinking about this. But...
(I guess I'm following the Gretsky philosophy of skating to where the puck will be...)
While I can generally agree with the article, there are things missing from it. One is that it’s entirely focused on Google. But Samsung sells a fair number of tablets. It’s estimated, as we don’t know how many smartphones, smart watches or tablets they really sell, as they don’t say in quarterly reports, that Samsung sells between 15 and 25% as many tablets as Apple. We don’t know if Samsung’s tablet sales have fallen in recent years as Apple’s has, something the article also fails to address.
but Samsung does it’s own SoCs, as Apple does. We don’t know exactly what the differences Samsung’s has, as they don’t just use their own. But a big thing here is that Google is apparently getting tired of not having a state of the art SoC. They’ve begun a chip division, hiring away a major designer from Apple, and I suspect, from others as well. We’ll see how that works out, as it will take a couple of years for any result of that to become available. Will they make these for the Android market in general, or just for themselves? Nobody knows.
if we poo poo their SoC before it comes out, just remember that the same thing was said about Apple’s attempt, before that came out.
Samsung have the SoC but not the OS. This is the perfect opportunity for Samsung to take over the tablet market using Tizen. I just don't think Samsung have shown in the past at being very good at software, so this may not actually happen.
Eventually, the Android tablet vendors will need an updated OS. So where is it going to come from?
This is the perfect opportunity for Samsung to take over the tablet market using Tizen. - Is that @Herbivore2 in the guise of GG1??? Just kidding. You restored normality with the very next sentence which is more important - I just don't think Samsung have shown in the past at being very good at software. I completely agree with this point, which is why Samsung cannot take over the <$300 market for themselves with Tizen. Android will continue to be the default OS for those tablets with <$300 price. Apple has pretty much taken over the majority of tablet market in >$300, with very little hope/scope for others to compete.
The answer to your last question is fairly obvious - Google. Don't look any further than that (despite this article implying otherwise), because they do support Android in tablets and will continue to do so.
Ditto Gator Guy's comments - there are plenty of Android tablets, just not Google tablets.
Apple's main competition in the tablet world is not Google, its Microsoft. Despite recent additions of things like the files app and split screen multitasking, iPads and iOS are not viable laptop replacements. I recently purchased a 12" iPad Pro to replace my aging MacBook Air. It can do a lot of what you want a laptop to do, but many of the workflows are clumsy, awkward and inefficient, and other things just can't be done and I ended up purchasing a MacBook Pro.
I haven't used one more than to play for a few seconds, but the Surface tablets seem to do a better job of being a laptop/tablet hybrid. iPads are awesome, solid devices, but if Apple wants them to truly become productivity devices, they need to step up the development of iOS.
Wow Honeycomb really looked like shit. Android tablets suck. If you want't a decent tablet experience you need dedicated apps like the iPad has so much more.
It's a good article and accurate... But I think it may cause some to become a bit over confident and to overlook an important point: Apple has worked hard on Tablets while Google kind of moved on to Chromebooks.
The Chromebooks mostly stumbled around but more recently have been finding a foot hold in education -- where countless kids are being indoctrinated into in the Google ecosystem of Chrome and GoogleDocs...
And, with 5G in the pipeline, the Chromebooks are likely to get stronger rather than weaker - Conceivably, a LOT stronger...
Has Google done an end-run around Apple? Is Apple preparing for the the possibilities that 5G can/will open up? ... I can't believe that they aren't thinking about this. But...
(I guess I'm following the Gretsky philosophy of skating to where the puck will be...)
Google worked to dump cheap ($150) generic chromebooks from its partners on US schools to mine children for data
Google isn’t selling its own stupidly expensive (now discontinued) Chromebook Pixel, not is it selling its $1000 Pixelbook netbook. Google makes $0 from education hardware, and its partners make very close to $0.
The only reason anyone is talking about US k-12 education is because that’s the only place Google can dump the browser based netbooks that no consumers or business people will buy.
If you collectively group cheap junk in volume with expensive high end concepts nobody buys, you can create the illusion that people want Google’s high end Pixel/Chrome devices, but the truth is clearly that nobody is buying them and it’s a foolish to think that’s suddenly going to change after 6-8 years.
Nobody has has ever made real money from Android tablets (vs phones, which were once profitable). Companies don’t keep making stuff that doesn’t sell. IE Zune, Nexus, Chromebook Pixel, etc. Google is backing out of tablets. It’s not leaving money on the table. There is no money on the table.
Meanwhile, Apple has revenues from iPad that are on the level of AWS or nearly twice the revenue of Netflix, at ~38% profit margins.
Google arrogantly thought it could walk in and take that away but it fell on its face and is now limping away.
While I can generally agree with the article, there are things missing from it. One is that it’s entirely focused on Google. But Samsung sells a fair number of tablets. It’s estimated, as we don’t know how many smartphones, smart watches or tablets they really sell, as they don’t say in quarterly reports, that Samsung sells between 15 and 25% as many tablets as Apple. We don’t know if Samsung’s tablet sales have fallen in recent years as Apple’s has, something the article also fails to address.
but Samsung does it’s own SoCs, as Apple does. We don’t know exactly what the differences Samsung’s has, as they don’t just use their own. But a big thing here is that Google is apparently getting tired of not having a state of the art SoC. They’ve begun a chip division, hiring away a major designer from Apple, and I suspect, from others as well. We’ll see how that works out, as it will take a couple of years for any result of that to become available. Will they make these for the Android market in general, or just for themselves? Nobody knows.
if we poo poo their SoC before it comes out, just remember that the same thing was said about Apple’s attempt, before that came out.
Samsung have the SoC but not the OS. This is the perfect opportunity for Samsung to take over the tablet market using Tizen. I just don't think Samsung have shown in the past at being very good at software, so this may not actually happen.
Eventually, the Android tablet vendors will need an updated OS. So where is it going to come from?
Google didn't drop tablet support, even if the article's author may have implied as much (heck pretty much stated it as fact) with the way the article was structured. Only Google's own tablets are being discontinued, not Android tablet support.
Still being Google's PR poster boy on an Apple site I see?
Google tablets, including Scamsung's, have long been throw-away garbage at the bottom of the barrel, with negligible market share. I have seen maybe 2 Android tablets, one Scamsung, and one Huawei, in the last 5 years out in the open. I shop at Costco which promotes Scamsung's garbage right at the entrance, and most people just walk on by, but do stop at the Apple counter far more frequently.
I do not see ANY Android tablets in corporate environments, or at the Univeristy I work at.
While DED likes to occasionally butter-up some of his commentary, but then who doesn't these days, what he says is factual. Google has basically given up on Android on tablets, as they are no longer promoting it to devs, or offering incentives for app devs to optimize their apps for tablet devices, something which they honestly never did, nor still do, well.
This, in essence, is Google dropping support. Based on the trajectory of Android tablet development and sales, just watch and see, as this turd dies the same painful death as so many of their other failed moonshots, whilst people like you, The Verge, and other idiots, continue to profess this is not the case and that "Android is winning!"
Dilger puts into elegant words what most of us knew instinctively from the get go.
Indeed, as he usually does. And what makes his articles so much more enjoyable to read, despite their length, is the fact they are always factually accurate, cross-reference a ton of useful and relevant data, and cause Android fans to want to punch their screens
When Apple has grown even more, and plays the endgame of ‘winner takes al’, and the very ethical Tim Cook has retired, what will this humongous organization do with all its power? Whenever I buy Apple stuff, and I really own a lot these days, this question haunts me at night.
The funny thing is that a similar question haunts me for Google (and Facebook): if/when the time comes where they are being sold/changing hands, what happens to all of the profile data they've built up on people?
That data would be worth a lot to governments or organizations interested in monitoring and potentially controlling a population's activities. Not that people don't already make a lot of this data available publicly, but the level of detail in the profile data gathered by Google would offer far more potential for misuse.
While I can generally agree with the article, there are things missing from it. One is that it’s entirely focused on Google. But Samsung sells a fair number of tablets. It’s estimated, as we don’t know how many smartphones, smart watches or tablets they really sell, as they don’t say in quarterly reports, that Samsung sells between 15 and 25% as many tablets as Apple. We don’t know if Samsung’s tablet sales have fallen in recent years as Apple’s has, something the article also fails to address.
but Samsung does it’s own SoCs, as Apple does. We don’t know exactly what the differences Samsung’s has, as they don’t just use their own. But a big thing here is that Google is apparently getting tired of not having a state of the art SoC. They’ve begun a chip division, hiring away a major designer from Apple, and I suspect, from others as well. We’ll see how that works out, as it will take a couple of years for any result of that to become available. Will they make these for the Android market in general, or just for themselves? Nobody knows.
if we poo poo their SoC before it comes out, just remember that the same thing was said about Apple’s attempt, before that came out.
Apple had not just hire a good designer, they had bought a whole company, that's a much bigger investment.
Even now, there doesn't seem to be that much hiring in that area at Google unless they're using people at HTC? Not sure there is anyone like that there.
Ditto Gator Guy's comments - there are plenty of Android tablets, just not Google tablets.
Apple's main competition in the tablet world is not Google, its Microsoft. Despite recent additions of things like the files app and split screen multitasking, iPads and iOS are not viable laptop replacements. I recently purchased a 12" iPad Pro to replace my aging MacBook Air. It can do a lot of what you want a laptop to do, but many of the workflows are clumsy, awkward and inefficient, and other things just can't be done and I ended up purchasing a MacBook Pro.
I haven't used one more than to play for a few seconds, but the Surface tablets seem to do a better job of being a laptop/tablet hybrid. iPads are awesome, solid devices, but if Apple wants them to truly become productivity devices, they need to step up the development of iOS.
A lot of people on this forum will hate you for saying that... After all, didn't Apple decree that the iPad was the way of the future?
(actually, I think it will be - but it just ain't there yet)
It's a good article and accurate... But I think it may cause some to become a bit over confident and to overlook an important point: Apple has worked hard on Tablets while Google kind of moved on to Chromebooks.
The Chromebooks mostly stumbled around but more recently have been finding a foot hold in education -- where countless kids are being indoctrinated into in the Google ecosystem of Chrome and GoogleDocs...
And, with 5G in the pipeline, the Chromebooks are likely to get stronger rather than weaker - Conceivably, a LOT stronger...
Has Google done an end-run around Apple? Is Apple preparing for the the possibilities that 5G can/will open up? ... I can't believe that they aren't thinking about this. But...
(I guess I'm following the Gretsky philosophy of skating to where the puck will be...)
Google worked to dump cheap ($150) generic chromebooks from its partners on US schools to mine children for data
Google isn’t selling its own stupidly expensive (now discontinued) Chromebook Pixel, not is it selling its $1000 Pixelbook netbook. Google makes $0 from education hardware, and its partners make very close to $0.
The only reason anyone is talking about US k-12 education is because that’s the only place Google can dump the browser based netbooks that no consumers or business people will buy.
If you collectively group cheap junk in volume with expensive high end concepts nobody buys, you can create the illusion that people want Google’s high end Pixel/Chrome devices, but the truth is clearly that nobody is buying them and it’s a foolish to think that’s suddenly going to change after 6-8 years.
Nobody has has ever made real money from Android tablets (vs phones, which were once profitable). Companies don’t keep making stuff that doesn’t sell. IE Zune, Nexus, Chromebook Pixel, etc. Google is backing out of tablets. It’s not leaving money on the table. There is no money on the table.
Meanwhile, Apple has revenues from iPad that are on the level of AWS or nearly twice the revenue of Netflix, at ~38% profit margins.
Google arrogantly thought it could walk in and take that away but it fell on its face and is now limping away.
"Google is backing out of tablets. It’s not leaving money on the table. There is no money on the table. "
That's because Google, like MS, has moved on to 2-in-1s. In that world, there is no room for a dedicated tablet. This is an interesting article on the state of the African / Middle Easter markets:
"Yet in the Middle East and African markets, the tide is turning away from tablets and back to PC's and 2-in-1 devices. And while the iPad Pro is considered a detachable device or a 2-in-1 device, Apple is simply not faring well in that particular market."
Whether, over time, that translates to other markets, who knows. iPad sales did see an uptick with the introduction of the $329 iPad and iPad Pro models but growth has leveled off.
Ditto Gator Guy's comments - there are plenty of Android tablets, just not Google tablets.
Apple's main competition in the tablet world is not Google, its Microsoft. Despite recent additions of things like the files app and split screen multitasking, iPads and iOS are not viable laptop replacements. I recently purchased a 12" iPad Pro to replace my aging MacBook Air. It can do a lot of what you want a laptop to do, but many of the workflows are clumsy, awkward and inefficient, and other things just can't be done and I ended up purchasing a MacBook Pro.
I haven't used one more than to play for a few seconds, but the Surface tablets seem to do a better job of being a laptop/tablet hybrid. iPads are awesome, solid devices, but if Apple wants them to truly become productivity devices, they need to step up the development of iOS.
A lot of people on this forum will hate you for saying that... After all, didn't Apple decree that the iPad was the way of the future?
(actually, I think it will be - but it just ain't there yet)
They're still selling a very good clip and the install base is still creeping up, the issue is that outside Apple, everything else is crap.
The future of computing seemingly is the smartphone and accessories. We stepped over bigger devices :-).
While I can generally agree with the article, there are things missing from it. One is that it’s entirely focused on Google. But Samsung sells a fair number of tablets. It’s estimated, as we don’t know how many smartphones, smart watches or tablets they really sell, as they don’t say in quarterly reports, that Samsung sells between 15 and 25% as many tablets as Apple. We don’t know if Samsung’s tablet sales have fallen in recent years as Apple’s has, something the article also fails to address.
but Samsung does it’s own SoCs, as Apple does. We don’t know exactly what the differences Samsung’s has, as they don’t just use their own. But a big thing here is that Google is apparently getting tired of not having a state of the art SoC. They’ve begun a chip division, hiring away a major designer from Apple, and I suspect, from others as well. We’ll see how that works out, as it will take a couple of years for any result of that to become available. Will they make these for the Android market in general, or just for themselves? Nobody knows.
if we poo poo their SoC before it comes out, just remember that the same thing was said about Apple’s attempt, before that came out.
Samsung have the SoC but not the OS. This is the perfect opportunity for Samsung to take over the tablet market using Tizen. I just don't think Samsung have shown in the past at being very good at software, so this may not actually happen.
Eventually, the Android tablet vendors will need an updated OS. So where is it going to come from?
Google didn't drop tablet support, even if the article's author may have implied as much (heck pretty much stated it as fact) with the way the article was structured. Only Google's own tablets are being discontinued, not Android tablet support.
So they are discontinuing the superior pure Android tablet experience that they had to make because their partners were incapable/unwilling to provide it on their own. What exactly does that say of the quality of what Samsung and others are selling when the platform developers have to try and step in to make it decent. Yes Gatorguy you've made your point, the other Android tablets that were inferior to this offering are still going to be supported by Google (for now).
It's a good article and accurate... But I think it may cause some to become a bit over confident and to overlook an important point: Apple has worked hard on Tablets while Google kind of moved on to Chromebooks.
The Chromebooks mostly stumbled around but more recently have been finding a foot hold in education -- where countless kids are being indoctrinated into in the Google ecosystem of Chrome and GoogleDocs...
And, with 5G in the pipeline, the Chromebooks are likely to get stronger rather than weaker - Conceivably, a LOT stronger...
Has Google done an end-run around Apple? Is Apple preparing for the the possibilities that 5G can/will open up? ... I can't believe that they aren't thinking about this. But...
(I guess I'm following the Gretsky philosophy of skating to where the puck will be...)
Google worked to dump cheap ($150) generic chromebooks from its partners on US schools to mine children for data
Google isn’t selling its own stupidly expensive (now discontinued) Chromebook Pixel, not is it selling its $1000 Pixelbook netbook. Google makes $0 from education hardware, and its partners make very close to $0.
The only reason anyone is talking about US k-12 education is because that’s the only place Google can dump the browser based netbooks that no consumers or business people will buy.
If you collectively group cheap junk in volume with expensive high end concepts nobody buys, you can create the illusion that people want Google’s high end Pixel/Chrome devices, but the truth is clearly that nobody is buying them and it’s a foolish to think that’s suddenly going to change after 6-8 years.
Nobody has has ever made real money from Android tablets (vs phones, which were once profitable). Companies don’t keep making stuff that doesn’t sell. IE Zune, Nexus, Chromebook Pixel, etc. Google is backing out of tablets. It’s not leaving money on the table. There is no money on the table.
Meanwhile, Apple has revenues from iPad that are on the level of AWS or nearly twice the revenue of Netflix, at ~38% profit margins.
Google arrogantly thought it could walk in and take that away but it fell on its face and is now limping away.
Yes... all technically true... ... But, like McDonald's is taking the long view by indoctrinating kids into liking the crap they sell by giving them toys and playgrounds, Google is introducing kids at the grade school level to the crap they 'sell'. I suspect that, at this point, there are a lot more kids with Google IDs (issued to them by their school) than with AppleIDs...
The first thing my 5th grade grandson does (after playing fortnite) is sign onto to his personalized Google Classroom where the bulk of his homework is.... And, he insists on using "Google" (meaning Chrome). ... I am hoping he comes to his senses with maturity....
Don't get me wrong: I'm not advocating Chromebooks. But I do see them as part of Google's long term strategy that is more likely to grow (especially with 5G) than to die or shrink. I am suspecting that that is why Apple is offering a $329 iPad and why they are enhancing the iPad with more laptop features each year -- to provide an alternative to the Chromebooks in education.
For a good laugh, try reading this little gem I came across, explaining why Android makers switched to 4:3 ratio. Do this away from any hot liquids like coffee or tea.
"A similar trend can be observed in the tablet operating system market share. In the second quarter of 2010, Apple’s iOS held 94 percent of the market share, while nearly three percent of the market used Android’s operating system. As of the first quarter of 2015, Android had taken over the market, holding almost 70 percent of the share. Apple’s iOS accounted for 24 percent of the market, and Microsoft’s operating system made up seven percent of it."
Google's business isn't built around hardware. It can dabble in it, make a more or less concerted effort here or there, fail or have moderate success in different areas. It could drop all tablet support today and jump right back in next year.
As for what they were ''supposed" to achieve with each idea/project, it's moot as long as Google has its services running on most of the devices out there. In that sense, mission accomplished and if iPad sales are largely flat, it can definitely be put down to Android dominance from Google. As can the presence of a so called 'low cost' iPad in Apple's lineup.
With the purchase of the HTC engineering resources, it's possible (probable?) that a concerted effort will be put into the Pixel phone brand over the coming years.
Tablets can be left in the hands of Lenovo, Samsung, Huawei which, among them alone, represent just as much of the pie as Apple and that is without throwing in Amazon or ''other" which has consistently taken more tablet share than Apple since 2013.
I doubt Google loses much sleep over consumer hardware decisions, loss making or not.
If that were so, they wouldn’t have invested so much in trying to make a real go at it.
Even publicly advertising that their hardware design is this and that... taking a page from Apple and plastering it everywhere.
It hurts them in the in the public eye and deep in the heart that they cannot sell products to people. No one wants their stuff unless it’s free. They literally have to give themselves away (cue U2 song from iTunes) in order to be accepted. When they charge, they’re left with nothing.
Despite the restructure, google is just an ad company that wastes money on other stuff.
We have two iPad mini's (the first with Retina, whenever that was). They're going strong, no issues, daily use (by kids), good battery life still. Never even a screen-stutter. Actually we've worn out the smart covers while the hardware is still near-perfect! Just realized that, wow. What does THAT say?
We recently bought the $329 iPad. It's SO NICE that for $329 we feel like we stole it, and it's not even the best one! Offering that model for $329 is super generous in my opinion. Could've easily been $379, which is a big difference mentally.
And we now have an old super-beater iPad 2 that a friend recently gave us. Even though it struggles at times rendering the graphics in our "Clash of Clans" game and can crash Safari at times (its two only uses), I see that as testimony of how LONG these iPads last; that it still mostly-works with X-years-future Apps. The multi-touch is still flawless, and rendering issues in a game shows how far the GAME has progressed over the years (way more complex now). Reasonable battery life too, for its age.
There are great products.
I agree 100% on the $329 iPad. Absolute steal. Pretty much killed the only reason most people buy android tablets (cost). And with the 2017 (9.7 inch) going on sale often, it can be had for $249.99 which is impossible to pass up on.
Comments
But I think it may cause some to become a bit over confident and to overlook an important point:
Apple has worked hard on Tablets while Google kind of moved on to Chromebooks.
The Chromebooks mostly stumbled around but more recently have been finding a foot hold in education -- where countless kids are being indoctrinated into in the Google ecosystem of Chrome and GoogleDocs...
And, with 5G in the pipeline, the Chromebooks are likely to get stronger rather than weaker - Conceivably, a LOT stronger...
Has Google done an end-run around Apple?
Is Apple preparing for the the possibilities that 5G can/will open up?
... I can't believe that they aren't thinking about this. But...
(I guess I'm following the Gretsky philosophy of skating to where the puck will be...)
This is the perfect opportunity for Samsung to take over the tablet market using Tizen. - Is that @Herbivore2 in the guise of GG1??? Just kidding. You restored normality with the very next sentence which is more important - I just don't think Samsung have shown in the past at being very good at software. I completely agree with this point, which is why Samsung cannot take over the <$300 market for themselves with Tizen. Android will continue to be the default OS for those tablets with <$300 price. Apple has pretty much taken over the majority of tablet market in >$300, with very little hope/scope for others to compete.
The answer to your last question is fairly obvious - Google. Don't look any further than that (despite this article implying otherwise), because they do support Android in tablets and will continue to do so.
Apple's main competition in the tablet world is not Google, its Microsoft. Despite recent additions of things like the files app and split screen multitasking, iPads and iOS are not viable laptop replacements. I recently purchased a 12" iPad Pro to replace my aging MacBook Air. It can do a lot of what you want a laptop to do, but many of the workflows are clumsy, awkward and inefficient, and other things just can't be done and I ended up purchasing a MacBook Pro.
I haven't used one more than to play for a few seconds, but the Surface tablets seem to do a better job of being a laptop/tablet hybrid. iPads are awesome, solid devices, but if Apple wants them to truly become productivity devices, they need to step up the development of iOS.
Google isn’t selling its own stupidly expensive (now discontinued) Chromebook Pixel, not is it selling its $1000 Pixelbook netbook. Google makes $0 from education hardware, and its partners make very close to $0.
The only reason anyone is talking about US k-12 education is because that’s the only place Google can dump the browser based netbooks that no consumers or business people will buy.
If you collectively group cheap junk in volume with expensive high end concepts nobody buys, you can create the illusion that people want Google’s high end Pixel/Chrome devices, but the truth is clearly that nobody is buying them and it’s a foolish to think that’s suddenly going to change after 6-8 years.
Nobody has has ever made real money from Android tablets (vs phones, which were once profitable). Companies don’t keep making stuff that doesn’t sell. IE Zune, Nexus, Chromebook Pixel, etc. Google is backing out of tablets. It’s not leaving money on the table. There is no money on the table.
Meanwhile, Apple has revenues from iPad that are on the level of AWS or nearly twice the revenue of Netflix, at ~38% profit margins.
Google arrogantly thought it could walk in and take that away but it fell on its face and is now limping away.
Google tablets, including Scamsung's, have long been throw-away garbage at the bottom of the barrel, with negligible market share. I have seen maybe 2 Android tablets, one Scamsung, and one Huawei, in the last 5 years out in the open. I shop at Costco which promotes Scamsung's garbage right at the entrance, and most people just walk on by, but do stop at the Apple counter far more frequently.
I do not see ANY Android tablets in corporate environments, or at the Univeristy I work at.
While DED likes to occasionally butter-up some of his commentary, but then who doesn't these days, what he says is factual. Google has basically given up on Android on tablets, as they are no longer promoting it to devs, or offering incentives for app devs to optimize their apps for tablet devices, something which they honestly never did, nor still do, well.
This, in essence, is Google dropping support. Based on the trajectory of Android tablet development and sales, just watch and see, as this turd dies the same painful death as so many of their other failed moonshots, whilst people like you, The Verge, and other idiots, continue to profess this is not the case and that "Android is winning!"
Indeed, as he usually does. And what makes his articles so much more enjoyable to read, despite their length, is the fact they are always factually accurate, cross-reference a ton of useful and relevant data, and cause Android fans to want to punch their screens
That data would be worth a lot to governments or organizations interested in monitoring and potentially controlling a population's activities. Not that people don't already make a lot of this data available publicly, but the level of detail in the profile data gathered by Google would offer far more potential for misuse.
(actually, I think it will be - but it just ain't there yet)
That's because Google, like MS, has moved on to 2-in-1s. In that world, there is no room for a dedicated tablet. This is an interesting article on the state of the African / Middle Easter markets:
"Yet in the Middle East and African markets, the tide is turning away from tablets and back to PC's and 2-in-1 devices. And while the iPad Pro is considered a detachable device or a 2-in-1 device, Apple is simply not faring well in that particular market."
http://www.patentlyapple.com/patently-apple/2018/03/while-apple-hit-a-home-run-for-the-holiday-quarter-the-middle-east-and-african-markets-remain-weak.html
Whether, over time, that translates to other markets, who knows. iPad sales did see an uptick with the introduction of the $329 iPad and iPad Pro models but growth has leveled off.
... But, like McDonald's is taking the long view by indoctrinating kids into liking the crap they sell by giving them toys and playgrounds, Google is introducing kids at the grade school level to the crap they 'sell'. I suspect that, at this point, there are a lot more kids with Google IDs (issued to them by their school) than with AppleIDs...
The first thing my 5th grade grandson does (after playing fortnite) is sign onto to his personalized Google Classroom where the bulk of his homework is.... And, he insists on using "Google" (meaning Chrome).
... I am hoping he comes to his senses with maturity....
Don't get me wrong: I'm not advocating Chromebooks. But I do see them as part of Google's long term strategy that is more likely to grow (especially with 5G) than to die or shrink. I am suspecting that that is why Apple is offering a $329 iPad and why they are enhancing the iPad with more laptop features each year -- to provide an alternative to the Chromebooks in education.
Even publicly advertising that their hardware design is this and that... taking a page from Apple and plastering it everywhere.
It hurts them in the in the public eye and deep in the heart that they cannot sell products to people. No one wants their stuff unless it’s free. They literally have to give themselves away (cue U2 song from iTunes) in order to be accepted. When they charge, they’re left with nothing.
Despite the restructure, google is just an ad company that wastes money on other stuff.