Apple beats Microsoft and Amazon, but tablets continue to fall: IDC

Yesterday we saw IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly tracker report for smartphones and now let’s see where the falling tablets market is heading. In the first quarter of 2016, tablet shipments worldwide saw a decline of 14.7 percent with 39.6 million units shipped. Among these, slate tablets accounted for 87.6 percent of the overall shipments. Meanwhile, detachables saw a triple-digit growth year-on-year with more than 4.9 million shipments. The quarter saw ‘mobile-first’ companies like Samsung and Huawei introduce detachables, but the mid-range price would mean facing competition from Microsoft’s surface. “The introduction of detachables from traditional smartphone vendors is only beginning and pose a real threat to traditional PC manufacturers,” said Jean Philippe Bouchard, Research Director, Tablets at IDC.  Apple yet again leads the pack with the latest iPad Pro 9.7 and iPad Pro 12.9, considered as replacements to the PCs. In fact, the report points out that iPad’s future will largely depend upon replacements for older iPads and PCs. Samsung takes the second spot with its last remaining of premium droids. It is followed by Amazon, Lenovo and Huawei. “Microsoft arguably created the market for detachable tablets with the launch of their Surface line of products,” said Jitesh Ubrani, senior research analyst with IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Device Trackers. “With the PC industry in decline, the detachable market stands to benefit as consumers and enterprises seek to replace their aging PCs with detachables. Apple’s recent foray into this segment has garnered them an impressive lead in the short term, although continued long-term success may prove challenging as a higher entry price point staves off consumers and iOS has yet to prove its enterprise-readiness, leaving plenty of room for Microsoft and their hardware partners to reestablish themselves.”