A few years ago, technology research firm Gartner predicted that the Apple iPad would account for more than half of the tablet market space through 2015. The latest study from the firm, however, reveals that this prediction was quite wrong: Android is now number one.
In the study, Gartner found that Android now has 61.9 percent of the tablet market share, a 116 percent increase from its 2012 market share, which stood at 45.8 percent. This is compared to iOS, which saw its tablet market share decrease to 36 percent from 52.8 percent in 2012. Even though Apple was able to hold on to the higher end of the market with the iPad and iPad Mini, Gartner attributes Android’s newly-acquired number one position in the tablet space to the increased availability of cheap, but suitably powered, Android tablets.
Microsoft, meanwhile, still occupies third place in tablet market share, capturing 2 percent of the market. While this represents a doubling of its 2012 market share, it’s still virtually microscopic compared to Android’s and iOS’s.
Interestingly, the biggest winner in terms of manufacturer market share was Samsung, which captured 19 percent of the tablet market space. That represents a 336 percent increase to 19.1 percent from 2012’s 7.4 percent. According to Gartner, this gargantuan jump was due to Samsung’s scattershot approach to the market with its Galaxy tablets, as well as “strong marketing and promotions.”
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