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Android Tablets See Growth at iPad’s Expense

March 13, 2013 by Leave a Comment
Samsung Galaxy Tab 2

Samsung Galaxy Tab 2

The market for tablets is changing as both Android-powered devices gather additional market share and the smaller form factor tablets, sub-8 inches, are seeing extremely strong growth, according to the most recent study from market research from International Data Corp.

Overall the tablet market is strong and growing, and IDC has upgraded its forecast to reflect this trend, now estimating that there will be 190.9 million, up from its previous forecast of 172.4 million units sold in 2013. It is also expecting the market to grow at an average increase of 11% a year between 2013 and 2016, with estimated shipments in 2017 to reach 350 million units according to the company’s most recent Worldwide Quarterly Tablet Tracker.

Smaller form factor tablets, those smaller than 8 inches, now account for half of all tablet sales and it expects that this trend will continue as consumers have found that smaller tablets often work better for daily usage compared to their larger brethren.

Tablets powered by the Android operating system grew its market share to 48.8% of the market, at the expense of Apple’s iPad family which witnessed a 5% market share drop to 46% of the market. However both are expected to see continual share erosion going forward as Windows, which combined RT and Pro, will gain an estimated 4.7% of the market this year but should grow to 10.1% by 2017, according to the report.

Another loser is ereaders, which are expected to lose market share due to the growing presence of low cost tablets that can both serve as an ereader and for a wide variety of additional uses as well. IDC has reduced its forecast by an average of 14% a year between 2013 and 2016. It estimates that there was 26.4 million sold in 2011 and that number represents the platform’s peak, declining to 18.2 million the following year. IDC expects modest gains this year and next before a permanent decline sets in.

Filed Under: Android, Apple, Google, iOS, iPad, Microsoft, Samsung, Surface, Tablets, Windows 8 Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Samsung Launches Galaxy Note 8

February 25, 2013 by Leave a Comment

S_KONA_001_Front-pen_Cream White

Samsung’s drive to apparently have a tablet offering at every possible size has taken another step forward as the company has delivered the Samsung Galaxy Note 8, an 8-inch tablet announced just prior to the start of the Mobile World Congress this week.

The tablet is hardly a secret as the company accidentally unveiled a great deal of its details last week at an event in South Korea. It will feature an 8-inch Super Clear display with 1280 x 800 resolution. Android’s Jelly Bean 4.1.2 operating system and will be powered by a 1.6GHz A9 quad core processor.

The company has upgraded its S Pen stylus technology that automatically launches features in the tablet when the pen is removed from its integrated holder. There are a number of pen-specific apps including S Note, S Planner and Email with handwriting integration.

There will be both a 5 MP rear facing camera as well as a 1.3MP front facing camera. It will come with 2GB RAM as well as either 16GB or 32GB storage that can be expanded further via a microSD card that supports up to 64GB. The tablet has phone capabilities, a feature that can be used simultaneously with other apps open and running. There will be both Wi-Fi only and a 3G model. It is expected in the second quarter but pricing has not yet been revealed.

Filed Under: Tablets Tagged With: , ,

Samsung Faces New Challenger to Galaxy Note in LG

February 18, 2013 by 4 Comments

Samsung is a battle-tested developer, and while the focus has apparently been with Apple and its iPhones, iPads and lawsuits, it was only a matter of time before someone else bubbled up to the forefront with products that might make inroads against Samsung’s offerings.

Of course there are a host of Android-driven devices that already compete with Samsung and you can now add LG Electronics and its Optimus G Pro smartphone to that growing list. The difference here is that the company is directly challenging Samsung and its popular Galaxy Note 2.

Introduced today and available now in South Korea and expected in the U.S. market in the second quarter the new device will have a 5.5-inch screen with a resolution of 1920 x 1080, better than the resolution available from the Note’s 1280 x 720.

It will be interesting to see how much additional competition the Samsung Note 2 draws. When the company released it initially I believed that it was a novelty item and would not last, shows what I know. Now that the form factor has been increasingly widely accepted I expect addition companies to enter the space to try and wrest some market share away from Samsung.

Filed Under: Smartphone Tagged With: , , ,

Microsoft Surface Pro Sells Out — More this Weekend

February 13, 2013 by Leave a Comment

surface

After the lackluster news about the holiday sales of its first generation tablet, the Surface RT, and then more bad news about its Pro version just prior to shipping Microsoft has some good news to report. It’s sold out!
It was reported that just a day into its widespread availability Microsoft was out of its 128GB version of its Surface Pro tablet, although its 64GB version remained on the shelves for prospective customers.

Well that might not be so great since it could mean loss of sales but it looks to be a short term issue as the company has a new round of tablets on the way and they are expected to hit store shelves as well as Microsoft’s own online store by this weekend.

Some have questioned if the tablets actually sold out, or if it was an artificial shortage designed to get solid publicity for the company by showing demand for the tablet. PCWorld posed that question and has provided similar comments from others.

Still it is hard to say for sure since it is doubtful that Microsoft is going to provide its roadmap and strategic plans for use to look at. The question I have is if the demand for the highest capacity tablets was driven by the news of how little space was actually available for users?

I guess we will see the true popularity of the tablets, both from Microsoft and others when IDC releases its next quarterly tablet report. Other Windows tablets have received popular acclaim, such as the most recent offering from Lenovo. This should help break open the market even more, providing Samsung, Apple, Google and Amazon with a new generation of competition.

Filed Under: Amazon, Android, Apple, Google, iPad, Kindle, Lenovo, Microsoft, PCWorld, Samsung, Surface, Tablets, Windows 8 Tagged With: , , , , ,

Friday Grab Bag: Tablet Sales Continue Strong Growth

February 1, 2013 by 2 Comments

Market research firm IDC’s latest study shows that in the fourth quarter of 2012 worldwide tablet sales hit 52.5 million units, a number that represents a 75.3% growth from the same period a year earlier when the industry sold 29.9 million units.

Apple remained the market leader with 43% of the total market share, but saw its position weaken as rivals continue to gain a foothold in the space. Last year in the fourth quarter Apple had almost 65% of the market. Samsung witnessed a 263% sales increase year over year and Asus saw 402% increase. Still Apple’s share is larger than its next few competitors combined.

Microsoft Surface Pro lacking in Storage?
Reports are emerging that the amount of storage available for use in the forthcoming Microsoft Surface Pro tablets will in no way match the amount of storage that is installed, at least in terms of accessibility by users.

According to a piece in The Verge, the tablet, due out on Feb. 9, will have significantly less storage available than will be advertised. Due to the operating systems, built-in apps and a recovery partition, a model advertised with 128GB will have 83GB of free storage. It notes that users can take steps after they purchase the device to open up additional space.

Search engine designed for tablets
As the number and type of mobile devices continues to grow an issue has been growing about how apps designed for one platform perform, or present themselves on another. What looks good on your PC very likely looks poor on your smartphone and the same can be said for tablets.

A new startup called Izak now has a free app that is designed specifically for tablets, both iPads and Android driven devices. The biggest difference is that it has the results in an array

of interactive tiles as opposed to static hyperlinks.

New Apple patent targeted at sneakers?
Have you ever looked at your shoes and not been able to honestly figure out of they were worn out or not? Well if this is an issue for you, have no fear because it looks like Apple has filed for a patent that will provide sensors in your shoes that can tell you just that.

It has developed what it calls a body bar sensing system that tracks movement and so can track how much the shoe is wearing out. Can I calibrate it for my sandals?

Apple loses Samsung sales ban effort
A U.S. appeals court has said no to Apple’s effort to revive the sales ban on Samung’s Galaxy Nexus smartphone, telling Apple that it will have to wait until at least a trial that is slated for March 2014 before any such action will be considered.

The full Federal Circuit Court of Appeals reaffirmed the earlier ruling made by a three judge panel from the same court that rejected Apple’s request for a sales ban.

Filed Under: Tablets Tagged With: , , , , ,

Research in Motion has New Identity as BlackBerry 10 Arrives

January 30, 2013 by Leave a Comment

bbry

Research in Motion’s comeback attempt starts today with the long awaited release of its next generation smartphone, the BlackBerry 10, a device the company is hoping will be the cornerstone of a revival in its fortune.

You have to give the company credit, it is not launching the new phone in a half hearted manner with events in New York City, Toronto, London, Paris, Dubai and Johannesburg and its executives have informed the world that RIM no longer exists and that it will now be known as BlackBerry.

BlackBerry introduced a pair of phones, the BlackBerry Z10 which has an all touch interface and the BlackBerry Q10 that has touch features but also includes a physical keyboard.
The company originally made its name as a supplier of a phone that served as a top flight business tool and it has not abandoned its roots, although it has also taken major steps in providing features that general consumers demand as well.

Some of the highlights of the platform include a new fast browser that supports HTML5. The BlackBerry Storefront now features 70,000 apps for the BlackBerry 10 family, and while a far cry from the millions available for iPhone and Android platforms it is a good start. The phones also come with some very popular apps now pre-installed including Facebook and Twitter.

The BlackBerry Hub (BBH) is a place to manage work and personal e-mail and social media. It features a messaging app called the BlackBerry Messenger that includes call and voice chat features and a program that is designed to separate your work apps and data from personal content and keep them secure. There is a host of additional features, some smply enhanced from previous versions, included on the new phones.

The company desperately needs a winner here as its woes have been well documented as the once undisputed leader in first smartphones for businesses has witnessed a steady erosion of its sales and market share followed by its revenue and profits following the same downward spiral.

At the same time its rivals are keeping the pressure on BlackBerry. In what is becoming a common game of one-upmanship Samsung picked today as the day it also unveiled one of its latest smartphones, the Galaxy Express 4G.

Apple, one of the other major powers in the smartphone space has been regularly updating its iPhones on a regular basis and the Internet is full of speculation of a new iPhone 5s, iPhone 6 and cheap iPhone or a mixture of all of the above. But you can be sure that the company has an aggressive rollout plan to attempt to maintain its position in the market.

Filed Under: Twitter Tagged With: , , , , , ,
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