Every three in four tablets in Australia will be an iPad this year.
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So what about the remaining 25%?
“It almost entirely Android,” Telsyte analyst Foad Fadaghi told SmartHouse.
“Windows 8 RT tablets will have only been in market for 2 months, and therefore will only have a small single digit share” Fadaghi added, meaning Microsoft OS accounts for around 2-3% of all tabs Down Under.
Every vendor from Samsung, to Asus and Acer has had a stab at making Android tablets the new iPad, but with limited success.
However, with the recent arrival of Google Nexus 7 at a consumer friendly price of $249 on Android Ice Cream Sandwich OS, the sky could be much brighter for Android based devices going forward.
Yesterday, Telsyte forecast tablet sales would exceed 2.3 million in Australia this year alone, with Apple iPad taking out 75% of the market.
Samsung is the No. 2 tablet maker globally with just under 10% share of the tab pie, according to anlaysts IDC recent figures with Asus (makers of Nexus 7) recording massive 115.5%, although from a small base.
Asus too (+3.4%) is growing in marketshare.
But the tab market may not be all Apple’s looking forward and Microsoft could be a key player in 2013 after Windows 8 is released on 26 October.
The IDC and several other analysts also expect the tab competition to heat up later this year with new Windows 8 entrants and more iPads (rumoured to be a mini), but there could be a risk of overkill, hints one IDC analyst.
“In addition to major new products from Amazon and quite likely Apple, we can also expect an influx of Microsoft Windows 8 and Windows RT-based tablets starting in late October,” said Bob O’Donnell, IDC.
“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 simply choose to remain on the sideline for another cycle.”
A recent Morgan Stanley report also predicted that Microsoft will become a key player in tablet market growth, possibly overtaking Android, and that price will dictate what sells.
“Consumers, especially those considering their first tablet purchase, believe Microsoft Office is a key feature, suggesting Windows 8 with Office could overtake Android as the second largest platform in the tablet market,” the report states.
Telsyte is also predicting Microsoft’s own branded Windows 8 Surface RT tablets will be competitively priced when released later this year, which could give it a push.
However, the iPad mini, believed to be released in the coming months, may also capture the imagination of the loved-up Apple consumer.
