Android Tablet Market Share Nearly Matches the iPad

The worldwide market share of Android tablets is just a few percentage points below that of Apple's iPad, new research says. Meanwhile, Windows tablets have carved out a significant but "niche" market in their first fill quarter being available.
Android tablets make up 43.4% of the global tablet market, while iOS-based ones (including the iPad, iPad 2 and iPad mini) represent 48.2%, according to data from Strategy Analytics. The 4.8% gap isn't negligible, but it's much less than 28.9% difference from the same period in 2012.
Two important caveats: The data reflects only the tablets sold during the quarter, not how many devices exist in the market. It also counts tablets shipped to vendors, which isn't the same thing as what is sold to consumers.

SEE ALSO: 4 Predictions for Tablets in 2013

Other analytics companies report on actual usage of tablets, based on examining data from websites that track what kind of devices access them. In those studies, the iPad is consistently dominant: Chitika reported last December that for every 100 impressions from an iPad, just 4.88 come from the next most popular tablet, Amazon's Kindle Fire.
Nonetheless, the data point to Android tablet sales advancing considerably. The introduction of a new class of devices — led by Google's Nexus tablets and Samsung's Galaxy line — as well as improved software in the form of Android 4.1 "Jelly Bean" have clearly had an impact.
Strategy Analytics also points out that when "white box" tablets are considered, which are tablets bought from a supplier and then rebranded and modified with lower-cost components, Android's market share jumps to 52%. Those tablets are generally from brands few people in the West have heard of (Calsen, for example) and serve a different market than the typical tablet consumer.
As for Windows tablets, they captured 7.5% of the market in the first quarter, which includes both Windows 8 and RT models. That adds up to about 3 million tablets sold. "Very limited distribution, a shortage of top tier apps, and confusion in the market are all holding back" Windows tablets from doing better.
Do you think 2013 will be the year Android tablets take away the iPad's crown as king of the tablet market? Share your thoughts in the comments.

Apple iPad 4 (late 2013) review

Nope there isn't. Which is why if you look at the Pocket-lint Award nominations for tablets and smartphones, Apple is nominated once in each category.

Best tablet: Nexus 7, iPad mini, Microsoft Surface RT, Asus Transformer Pad Infinity, Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1

Best mobile phone: iPhone 5, Samsung Galaxy S III, HTC One X+, Nokia Lumia 820, Samsung Galaxy Note 2

If we were so Apple bias, we would have surely put the iPad 3 and the iPad 4 in the best tablet category, and left out the Nokia 820 for Best phone.

iPad 4 and iPad Mini Available Now with LTE Data Plans from Sprint and AT&T [PHOTOS]

Proud owners of the 4th generation iPad (iPad 4) and iPad Mini can now connect to the internet without any available Wi-Fi; with a data plan, that is. As promised, Apple’s latest tablets are now available for purchase with LTE connectivity and will ship to buyers for free in two weeks if bought from Apple’s website. If you don’t feel like waiting, however, don’t worry. Sprint and AT&T both announced this morning that the two carriers will have the iPad 4 and iPad Mini SKUs available in stores today.

Those interested in purchasing either iPad today should hurry. Sprint stressed that supplies are extremely limited and likely will be at AT&T as well.

iPad Mini Pics

 

                            

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

2 -

iPad Mini

Comment

+1

Sprint’s data plans are available with no contract allowing users to opt out whenever they want. Conversely, AT&T’s packages come in month-to-month or a 2-year deals.

The burning question for the Apple faithful is how much LTE is going to cost. Both iPads already cost a pretty penny and, at first glance, look severely overpriced when  to Google’s comparable and cheaper Nexus 7 tablet.

Sprint is offering four data plans. For $14.99/month, users get 300MB of data; for 3GB goes for $34.99/month; 6GB for $49.99/month; and 12GB for $79.99/month. AT&T is currently only offering three plans at similar cost. 250MB goes for $14.99/month; 3GB for $30/month; and 5GB for $50/month.

iPad 4 Pics

         

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

1 -

iPad 4 available with LTE

Comment

+1

Early reviews indicated that both iPads would be a smash hit, especially for those already loyal to Apple. The only qualms were in regards to pricing, which was not only undercut by Google’s flagship tablet but also by Barnes & Noble’s Nook HD and Amazon’s Kindle Fire HD all three of which were promoting their respective tablets as the best and most affordable.

If you’re lucky enough to grab an iPad 4 or iPad Mini with LTE connectivity, be sure to let us know how well (or not) it performs. Will it be worth the extra cash? Give us all the details in the comments section below.

Apple iPad 4 Wi-Fi only tablet review

I

I didn’t get the iPad at first. When the tablet was first announced, I was interested but couldn’t see the value to me. I had an e-book reader, I had a phone on which I could watch films while travelling and listen to music, and I had a laptop for everything else. Why, I wondered, did I need a tablet too?
I was happy to take possession of a first-gen iPad a few months later - I won it in a raffle, oddly enough - but I thought that, after a brief play, it would just sit and gather dust.

Not the iPad 4, the 'iPad with Retina Display'

How wrong I was.
To the tablet sceptics, all I can say is: I was one of your number, but no longer. My laptop gets plenty of use and so did the e-reader - unlike a ten-inch tablet, it fits in coat pockets - until I availed myself of a Nexus 7 earlier this year, but my iPad has become my prime home device.
I read my newspaper on it long I before head off to work and pass by a newsagent. I read magazines on it. I read lots of comics on it - like the papers and the mags, they are so much better viewed in portrait, in your hand, than on a notebook landscape display, or on a monochrome E Ink screen.

Now with added Lightning

The tablet’s speed and big, colour display makes flipping around computer reference books so much more practical than it is on an e-reader, though the ability to take the equivalent of six inch-and-a-half thick books to work with no strain is much the same with either device.
While my phone remains my main music playback device, watching a stack of catch-up TV programmes and films on a tablet is a much more pleasant experience than the phone and certainly than the ropey back-of-the-seat screens you get on most flights these days. Travel by a no-frills airline and you don’t even get that.

Not a laptop/e-reader/netbook replacement

The iPad, since upgraded to the thinner, lighter iPad 2, is used to check multiple email accounts, for a lot of web browsing and such, and occasionally I let the nipper play games on it. Once in a while, I hook up a Bluetooth keyboard and use it to report from events. It’s not an efficient a writer’s tool as a multi-window OS device is, but it’ll do at a pinch.
So, for me, my iPad has become a crucial part of my working and home lives. It has taken over certain roles that I used to put other devices to, but hasn’t superseded any of them entirely. I’ve never believed in a one-size-fits-all approach to technology. I won’t limit myself to one device when there’s another that’s better suited to the task in hand.