Tablet Shipments Continue To Decline; Apple Still Retains Top Position In Tablet Segment Despite Negative Growth: IDC

The first quarter of 2015 was not a good time for the tablet market worldwide as the tablet shipments recorded a year-on-year decline for the second consecutive quarter starting from January to March, according to reports.

As per the numbers released by research firm IDC, tablet and two-in-one device shipments slipped to 47.1 million, which is a 5.9 percent decline from the same quarter in 2014. The tablet market witnessed its first year-on-year decline in shipments in the Q4 of 2014, reports PC Mag.

"The market slowdown that we witnessed last quarter is continuing to impact the tablet segment," the PC Mag report quoted IDC Tablet Research Director, Jean Philippe Bouchard, as saying. Bouchard shared some good news saying certain growth areas like Cellular-enabled tablets are beginning to emerge. According to Bouchard, besides pushing higher usage than Wi-Fi only tablets, cellular-enabled tablets have also helped position the segment as true mobile solutions rather than stay-at-home devices, reported PC Mag.

According to a report on Market Business News, in the first quarter of this year, Apple shipped 12.6 million iPads with its market share at 26.8 percent but the number of shipments is 22.9 percent lower as compared to the same quarter, last year. As per IDC, despite five consecutive quarters of negative annual shipment growth, Apple still retains the top position in the tablet market, as reported by PC Mag.

According to IDC, the success of new iPhone and the Mac product line will affect the growth of iPads. As per the research firm’s expectations, Apple will witness negative growth until the company gives a refresh to the product, as per the PC Mag report.

Samsung that has 19.1 percent market share recorded a 16.5 percent decline in shipments compared to the same quarter last year, reports Market Business News. Samsung maintained its second position during the first quarter. With 5.3 percent, Lenovo has been ranked third in the tablet market, Asus gets the fourth spot with 3.8 percent and LG gets the fifth spot with 3.1 percent, reported PC Mag.

While Lenovo benefitted from its low cost tablets, LG benefitted from its association with telcos, reports Digital Trends.

(For feedback/comments, mail the writer at pragyan.ibtimes@gmail.com)