For some time now it can be argued that Apple has successfully dominated the tablet market kicking out competitors such as HP, Motorola and RIM. The synergy between Apple’s hardware and software functionalities makes it an untouchable and powerful piece of equipment for competitors
As we can see from the graph below, Apple pioneered the breakthrough of a tablet device, introducing their iPad and naturally gaining a considerable piece of the pie in connection to market share for tablet devices.
The graph indicates that that very little has changed in the past six years. Although it is evident that there has been a small increase in market share for Samsung, it does not seem significant enough to damage Apple in any way.
However, as the decline in tablet sales increases, will this give Apple’s competitors the leverage they need to slip into the market space by creating something unique. Following much bad press at the end of last year, Apples easy to bend iPad Pro and minimalistic new functions has given consumers a reason to turn their heads away from an iOS operating system and potentially to an Android system.
PC Makers Lenovo, agree that while Apple dominates the high-end tablet market, they will be focusing on, mid and low-end tablets. These tablets will be more accessible to consumers with their attractive lower price points and will also be targeted to organisations for day to day business activity and in sectors such as Education and Health.
How they will do this is by manufacturing tablets with cheaper hardware and by using Android and Windows systems, that can easily be integrated with already long-standing systems in the workplace.
Competitors such as Samsung are also paying attention to consumer behaviour and are almost creating a decrease in tablet purchases by offering consumers an in-between piece of technology such as its Note models.
The Samsung Note offers the best of both worlds making it a two in one hand-held device. The core functionality of it is to work like a normal mobile phone. However, it’s relatively big screen gives the user tablet functionalities, diminishing the need for one of each totally.
As the years have gone on, tablets have become more prominent. What started as a relatively good size of technology to do smaller less essential tasks on is now slowly entering the market of laptops. This is evident in Apple’s iPad Pro.
However, Microsoft with their Surface Pro has dominated the market share in offering consumers technology that works as a tablet or a laptop. The Surface Pro, which is aimed at the professionals and corporate market has created a unique platform which makes it a popular choice. It’s flexible software and hardware functionalities give it the upper hand, offering the consumer more than just a tablet in comparison to Apple’s iPad Pro.
So, with the consumer tablet market stagnant, it seems as if though consumers are not buying tablets as regularly as they once were. Tablets are very different from phones in the way that phones are more likely to be damaged easily due to accidents or battery issues.
However, tablets are not the same. Tablets are mostly kept safe and are not charged as regularly, and so there’s no real incentive for consumers to get a new model until a need for it or something extraordinary comes along. As a result, the refresh cycle for a tablet is much less.
It seems now that if Apple has anything up its sleeve, now would be a good time to bring it to market or they will slowly and surely be overtaken by their competitors. The need for new technology and a refresh in the way systems and procedures are managed within a forever changing world are real.
Consumers and businesses alike are always looking for ways to simplify everyday life or work. It is because of this reason that technology is imperative and organisations such as Apple, Samsung and Microsoft who can offer these new schools of thought thrive in a demanding and relatively new world of technology.
