Market building for Windows tablets
May 1, 2015
Windows-based tablets continued to grab more market share from competitor-branded tablets by Apple and Google in the first quarter of 2015. Total Tablet shipments reached 51.8 million units in Q1 2015, down 9 per cent from 56.7 million in Q1 2014, according to preliminary data by Strategy Analytics’ Tablet & Touchscreen Strategies (TTS) service report.
Report highlights include:
– Windows branded Tablets comprised 6.6 percent of shipments in Q1 2015, up 1.1 points from Q1 2014
– Android branded Tablet shipment market share jumped to 69 percent in Q1 2015, a new first quarter high
– Apple continued its slide in market share down to just 24 percent of the market in Q1 2015, 4.5 points lower than Q1 2014
Tablet & Touchscreen Strategies Service Director Peter King said, “Microsoft’s Surface Pro 3 has performed better than its predecessor, its more affordable cousin Surface 3 launches late in Q2 2015, and traditional PC vendors and White Box vendors alike are testing the limits of lower cost license-free Windows Tablets under 9-inches. All of this adds up to a foundation for further growth as Windows 10 arrives in the second half of 2015.”
Tablet & Touchscreen Strategies Senior Analyst Eric Smith added, “Apple, Google, and Microsoft are all eager to show enterprise customers that Tablets can perform in key verticals and as PC replacements in the office. The Apple-IBM MobileFirst partnership, expanded access to Microsoft Office on Tablets, and better productivity and security functionality via Android for Work and Samsung’s Knox solution are all crucial ecosystem enhancements to making the Tablet more attractive.”