14 DAY TRIAL // A new study by the IDC shows that worldwide tablet shipments declined by more than 12% in the second quarter of this year while the market started to shift its focus towards productivity. It is also revealed that worldwide tablet shipments reached 38.7 million in the second quarter of 2016.
The study indicates that the market continues to face difficulties, as it recorded a 12.3% year-on-year decline while manufacturers have started to refocus their product lines and consumers to buy fewer tablets.
65% of all tablets shipped in the past quarter were based on Android OS, which is followed by iOS with 26%, while Windows fell on the third place. The report shows that the trend has been constant for some years, but as of recently, Android has started to lose part of its share in favor of Windows OS.
Jitesh Ubrani, senior research analyst at the IDC, stated that "the next 12 to 18 months will be very interesting as Google launches the next version of Android with better multi-tasking support and as they begin to bring together their two operating systems."
Apple continues to be the top tablet manufacturer, followed by Samsung
The top two tablet manufacturers managed to keep their positions, as Apple and Samsung continue the competition in the tablet market, not just the smartphone sector. Apple ranked first with 25.8% of market share, followed by Samsung with 15.6% and Lenovo with 6.6%. The top five vendors managed to comprise 57.6% of the market, up from last year's 51.8%.
Apple and Samsung reported lower shipments, as the latter saw by 2.6% fewer shipments, reaching 15.6% of the market. Apple actually managed to increase its market share, which rose by 0.9% to 25.8%. Earlier this year, Apple unveiled the 9.7-inch iPad Pro while Samsung released some tablets these past few months, and it's expected to unveil the Galaxy Tab S3 during IFA 2016.
Amazon also made it to the top 5 index with its Fire tablet, which is quite a performance since the company usually only appears in the IDC index during the holiday season.