Tablet sales down, but Apple surges as the market leader

1.44 million tablets were sold in the first half of this year, down 2% on the same time in 2018, but there’s strong numbers for Apple – and good reason to expect many more sales to come.

Apple’s refreshed iPad Mini devices contributed to a 5% growth in Apple products, while Windows-based tablets also grew by 3%.

The overall tablet share breaks down like this:

• Apple 53.4%
• Windows 27.4%
• Android 17.6%
• Others 1.6%

Despite the huge number of devices on offer, Android tablets have struggled with a 28% decline year on year, though Samsung remains one of the top three vendors – go figure.

Telsyte reckon the drive for 5G will push more sales and will keep some people away, though the average replacement cycle of 3.2 years means there’s a Long pipeline of sales for all companies on offer.

More interestingly, Telsyte firmly beleive 2-in-1 devices are here to stay, with PC replacement options turn to these versatile devices.

In addition, Telsyte class the Apple iPad as a 2-in-1 when paired with an Apple Smart keyboard, which is something now available in many more iPad models – that, plus the new iPadOS make the iPad a compelling laptop replacement option.

Nearly 4 million Aussies are using a 2-in-1 already, with Windows dominating that space – that dominance is about to be impacted by that very same Smart Keyboard.

“The slate-only format is rapidly being replaced by 2-in-1s as Australians seek to replace older laptops and tablets with converged touchscreen devices with keyboards,” Telsyte Senior Analyst, Alvin Lee says.

Reports of the Death of the Tablet have indeed been greatly exaggerated.