14 DAY TRIAL // The tablet market recorded a 3.33 percent decline in 2022, according to new data released by IDC, and all but one company recorded massive drops.
You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to figure out the name of the company that managed to defy the market trends. Apple increased its sales by 7 percent year over year, as the Cupertino-based tech giant sold 61.8 million iPads, up from 57.8 million in 2021.
This means Apple now controls 38 percent of the tablet market worldwide, IDC says.
Samsung continues to be the runner-up, though the tablet unit fell 0.8 percent for the South Koreans last year. The company sold a total of 30.3 million units, enough to secure an 18.6 percent market share.
The biggest drop was recorded by Lenovo, whose sales went down 34.6 percent year over year. While in 2021 the company sold 17.7 million tablets, 2022 produced a major drop, so its yearly shipments fell to 11.6 million units.
“We are currently amidst changing market dynamics. While affordability and simplicity of use will continue to be some of the key drivers for the market to sustain, consumers have also begun to evaluate the importance of higher-spec devices when making purchase decisions,” said Anuroopa Nataraj, senior research analyst with IDC's Mobility and Consumer Device Trackers.
“As a result, vendors will need to focus on evolving their tablet portfolio. In addition, 2022 saw some new players like Xiaomi and OPPO enter the market offering consumers a complete solution that is connected across devices, enriching the user experience. In this changing environment, it will be necessary for vendors to rethink their product portfolios to cater to consumers, education, and corporate in an effort to drive demand.”
Huawei’s sales are also going down, but this is no longer a surprise, as the Chinese firm sold only 9.1 million tablets last year.