Android Tablets Gaining Market Share

According to the latest estimates by IDC, Android tablets are gaining on Apple for 2012 while overall sales of tablets are increasing.

Google is expected to come in at 42.7 percent of the market this year, which is up from 39.8 percent in 2011.  Microsoft is also capitalizing on the growth of tablets with almost 3 percent of the market share, up from 1 percent.  To make room for these advances, Apple will have to give up some of its market share, down to 53.8 percent from 56.3 percent.

It’s not just consumers that see the value in tablets, but businesses are getting onboard, too.  It is expected that by 2016, businesses will be buying 125 million tablets.  Considering that overall sales are expected to be around 122 million for this year, that number is a rapid increase.  That shows that companies like Samsung and Lenovo are at the right place to capture some of that market.

The reason for the increase for Android devices is that they are making much better products than before.  Companies like Amazon, Google, and Samsung are designing tablets that compete with the iPad for a lower price.

While you will still find a few consumers who prefer the dedicated tablet for eReaders, most people like the other features on regular tablets enough to be satisfied with the reading experience found on them.

It is further predicted that Apple will continue to lose their share of the market but that Google will also see a drop.  The predicted winner in this scenario?  Microsoft, the late entrant into the game is expected to see the most gains by 2016.  If the predictions about more businesses using tablets come true, then this stands to reason since Microsoft has always done well in the business world.  Of course, all of this depends on what the companies release in the next couple of years and who comes up with the best new technology.

[Images via paintsthefuture & mobilebroadband.net]