Apple's Share of Tablet Market Surges to 68% as Kindle Fire Shipments Plummet

[darkplanets]

Quarterly drop is inevitable after a holiday quarter, for ANY manufacturer. Happens year after year. Ergo, YoY is more accurate. Market share gains are important too.

Looks like Amazon still has some legwork to do.

 

[vartanarsen]

ooooo, I hope this means they come down in price....would love to pick up a cheaper fire to supplement my itoys

 

[MrXiro]

As a long time Apple user, and marketer who doesn't fall into marketing BS, I can only criticize Apple these days, but the large amount of stupid fanboys makes it useless to do so.

However, and even if the iPad 3 was an iPad 2S, I can't criticized the iPad because this is a jewel of tech and this is the product that competitors are way too far to match. The Galaxy Tab is utter crap compared to the iPad and no other tablet is even close.

In comparision, the Galaxy S2 or the Lumia 900 are perfectly good competitors to the iPhone.

Ha... I had the exact same argument about the Galaxy Tab 2 8gb for $399 on Engadget. Some nut told me that it's the best... I laughed in his face. I even made the same comment about he Tab 7 for 249...

The guy's name is Whacko on disqus if anyone wants to debate a crazy Fandroid.

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ooooo, I hope this means they come down in price....would love to pick up a cheaper fire to supplement my itoys

I bought a refurb one from Amazon yesterday for my wife at 139.00. Mother's day gift.

 

[Tinmania]

Thanks

It was meant to be an obviously distorted comparison, with the intention that it would at least get some people to look up the real numbers behind the percentages, along with the huge difference in markets being addressed.

Cheers!

You also ignored the fact that most of Q1 2012 for the iPad meant iPad 2 sales, when it was widely known a new iPad was around the corner. Presumably, plenty of people held off.

I'd like to see Q2 for both products.




Michael

 

[Cheffy Dave]

I don't think it's about a niche market

My mantra is ....tablet, w/o App Store=Fail
It began with the iPhone 3G, and the fact that Steve BUILT the IOS ,OS from the start, as a base for the Phone,Touch,,and in later years iPad and soon iOSX, this forward vision, isn't present in all the Companies who try to jump on the bandwagon, in fact, it is missing in all of them.
MS tried the tablet, and it flopped, Steve redefined it,re-issued it, and the rest is history.
His vision for the future, is present,even in death, it lives after him for as far as we know, five years. Apples future, will be if they have vision for the future as Steve did.
My iPad, as Steve put it is "Amazing", I am 64 and live on my iPad,third generation, gave away my iPad 1 to someone who would never have purchased one, they are smitten, and an Apple fan for life,sweet

 

[hbunting]

No surprise really. The Kindle Fire is targeted to niche markets, the iPad has wider appeal.

Samsung won't be able to touch the tablet market in the same way Apple does without offering something new and better than the iPad. And let's face it it's not going to happen.

Never say never. I'd put money down that people where saying the same about Apple (in all aspects) over the course of the last decade.

 

[efktd]

truth is, apple's the shhht.

 

[ModerateFKR]

Never underestimate Amazon, they just getting started in the tablet biz.

Oh really! There never was any evidence that the Kindle Fire had a chance of making a significant mark on the scene. Why? Amazon's business model, such as it is, consists of selling a book reader that doubles as an Amazon shop window - at a loss! Now, the fact that any intelligent buyer is going to see right through that little game in a heartbeat is obvious. And no-one, other than Amazon, is going to care less that Amazon made no money on the sale.

We all know that the future of tablets is based on engagement. Apple have planned user engagement into the iOS ecosystem - before the January 2007 announcement of the first iPhone. Amazon isn't in the same ball park. Indeed, they're not even reacting on anything like the same level. Trying to manufacture engagement based on book reading and one outlet shopping is the most stupid idea I've ever heard of. Hoping that will provide future income is at the very least optimistic, at worst criminal.

I said all this at the time and was accused of being a "fanboy'. Even though the term is retarded, I admit to being a fan of successful companies that design great products. But such companies also need to have one other vital element in place: a viable, customer/user focused business model. Apple does. Amazon does not.

 

[hexor]

Everyone also forgets this is for units SHIPPED. As we've seen in the past, the number of Android tablets shipped doesn't come anywhere near the actual numbers sold. Amazon also doesn't even release how many Kindles they shipped so it is guesswork. Whereas Apple publicly states how many were shipped/sold. So to say Apple had only 50-70% of the tablet market share is a severe under-estimate.

 

[BC2009]

Fanboy Lipstick? Indeed.

Nothing like putting a little fanboy lipstick on bad news.

"Our sales sucked... just not as bad as everyone else's".

To quote Tim Cook on iPad sales during the earnings call:

“Just two years after we shipped the initial iPad, we’ve sold 67 million. To put that in some context, it took us 24 years to sell that many Macs, and five years for that many iPods, and over three years for that many iPhones, and we were extremely happy with the trajectory on all of those products.”

Apple sold 12M iPads in a quarter where the new one was anticipated and only released for like 15 days of the quarter. Keep in mind that iPhones are even cheaper than iPads when bought on contract. Some folks are so ready to scream "fanboy" that they simply can't see the facts if they were thrown in front of their face. But I'm sure that those 67 million people are just members of a brain-washed cult and not consumers making a common-sense educated purchase.

 

[Glideslope]

So comparing 1Q12 to 4Q11:

The Kindle sold 4 million less than the holiday quarter.

The iPad sold 3.6 million less than the holiday quarter.


--

The Kindle Fire still is mostly a US domestic product, as well, while the iPad sells in many countries.

2Q12 to 4Q11.

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Yup, the market for the iPad mini is huge! lol

Just wait. 7" with Stylus. "Newton S".

 

[blow45]

The kindle hasn't been helped by apple's anticompetitive practices in collusion with publishers, when you effectively manage to stop pricing competition for ebooks, whilst raising prices considerable higher for the consumer, then you eff up your competitor who's relying on that to sell their devices. Apple has become an obese monopolistic monster. I hope the Doj and the EU goes hard on them.

I also hope androids and ms get their **** together in the tablet market because if apple comes to dominate it prices will rise and innovation will be stifled. If within the next three months samsung, ms and amazon (in the form of a larger fire that I am sure they release) don't come to market with something they 've lost their window forever. But they will. Anyway what the c. is taking ms so long to come up with a tablet os? Jesus, these guys have had something that looks close to an eternity to come up with something...

 

[roadbloc]

I wonder how Windows 8 tablets will effect all of this. (If any of us ever live to see them.)

 

[charlituna]

Nothing like putting a little fanboy lipstick on bad news.

"Our sales sucked... just not as bad as everyone else's".

It's not fanboy anything when it's backed by numbers like 30 million units for the iPad and 3 million Kindles (no word on how many we're the Fire)

 

[blow45]

I wonder how Windows 8 tablets will effect all of this. (If any of us ever live to see them.)

lol, I got to give it to you, this was pretty damn funny. It boggles the mind what the heck is taking microsoft so long, since they won't even allow legacy apps on arm anyway...

 

[charlituna]

I guess Tim Cook was right when he said that nobody wants a limited function tablet!

I know a handful of folks that either returned their Fire or refused to get one based on the whole have to be logged in, doesn't ask for your password to buy stuff nonsense.

 

[marksman]

Read the article:

on worldwide tablet shipments for the first quarter of 2012, revealing that despite a quarterly drop in iPad shipments of over 20%,

Yeah right... The BOD in Cupertino is breaking out the champagne over that 150% right now. You're only as good as your last quarter in this biz. YOY growth means nothing.

I taught a business basics class to elementary school students when i was in high school. I might be able to break out an online course for you.

 

[Jessica Lares]

The iPad's screen is horrible. That's my only complaint and why I haven't blown any money on one yet. It just doesn't look that great compared to a MacBook Pro's, iMac's, or even an iPhone's screen. The new iPad's doesn't make a difference, it's still as bad as the last ones. I have seen them numerous times in person too and it just blows my mind at how awful they are.

The Kindle Fire has a great screen. If the iPad had that screen, plus the Retina aspects of it, it would be so much better. Like 1,000,000x better even.

Most people returning the Kindle Fire is simply because they have no idea about Android in the first place, don't know that it lacks in selection, and were only tempted by its price tag and refused to deal with Amazon's ecosystem which the device was designed for. It is the nicest Android tablet out there when you consider that the others are piled with horrible TouchWiz and other horrible OEM junk. Amazon includes very, very nice bloatware like Facebook, IMDB, QuickOffice, ComiXology, and it's own stuff, and that's about it.

Having ICS on it just makes it even better for those that can handle custom ROMS and kernels.

Software wise, iOS just kicks every Android product of course, but it's getting better. Flipboard will be awesome on a 7" screen once it's out.

 

[faroZ06]

The Kindle Fire is a bad idea. The original Kindle is good for reading books, though.

Apple seems like the perfect company for tablets. They make iPhones and iPods but also make PCs.

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The iPad's screen is horrible. That's my only complaint and why I haven't blown any money on one yet. It just doesn't look that great compared to a MacBook Pro's, iMac's, or even an iPhone's screen. The new iPad's doesn't make a difference, it's still as bad as the last ones. I have seen them numerous times in person too and it just blows my mind at how awful they are.

The Kindle Fire has a great screen. If the iPad had that screen, plus the Retina aspects of it, it would be so much better. Like 1,000,000x better even.

Most people returning the Kindle Fire is simply because they have no idea about Android in the first place, don't know that it lacks in selection, and were only tempted by its price tag and refused to deal with Amazon's ecosystem which the device was designed for. It is the nicest Android tablet out there when you consider that the others are piled with horrible TouchWiz and other horrible OEM junk. Amazon includes very, very nice bloatware like Facebook, IMDB, QuickOffice, ComiXology, and it's own stuff, and that's about it.

Having ICS on it just makes it even better for those that can handle custom ROMS and kernels.

Software wise, iOS just kicks every Android product of course, but it's getting better. Flipboard will be awesome on a 7" screen once it's out.

The latest iPad has a retina display, which, by definition, is as good as it can get.

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The kindle hasn't been helped by apple's anticompetitive practices in collusion with publishers, when you effectively manage to stop pricing competition for ebooks, whilst raising prices considerable higher for the consumer, then you eff up your competitor who's relying on that to sell their devices. Apple has become an obese monopolistic monster. I hope the Doj and the EU goes **** them.

I also hope androids and ms get their **** together in the tablet market because if apple comes to dominate it prices will rise and innovation will be stifled. If within the next three months samsung, ms and amazon (in the form of a larger fire that I am sure they release) don't come to market with something they 've lost their window forever. But they will. Anyway what the c. is taking ms so long to come up with a tablet os? Jesus, these guys have had something that looks close to an eternity to come up with something...

Yeah, the difference is that Apple makes the best tablets. And you can't have a monopoly on eBooks with the Kindle and... you know, regular books.

Apple has probably learned from Microsoft that you can't just stop innovating and hope that nobody else takes over.

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ooooo, I hope this means they come down in price....would love to pick up a cheaper fire to supplement my itoys

A Kindle Fire AND an iPad? Do you also have a MacBook Air and a Dell netbook?

 

[vartanarsen]

The Kindle Fire is a bad idea. The original Kindle is good for reading books, though.

Apple seems like the perfect company for tablets. They make iPhones and iPods but also make PCs.

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The latest iPad has a retina display, which, by definition, is as good as it can get.

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Yeah, the difference is that Apple makes the best tablets. And you can't have a monopoly on eBooks with the Kindle and... you know, regular books.

Apple has probably learned from Microsoft that you can't just stop innovating and hope that nobody else takes over.

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A Kindle Fire AND an iPad? Do you also have a MacBook Air and a Dell netbook?

No its great, i could use the fire for the bathroom, and baby my iPad this way

 

[blow45]

The latest iPad has a retina display, which, by definition, is as good as it can get.
-------------
Yeah, the difference is that Apple makes the best tablets. And you can't have a monopoly on eBooks with the Kindle and... you know, regular books.

Apple has probably learned from Microsoft that you can't just stop innovating and hope that nobody else takes over

Wrong and wrong. Retina lcd cannot be used in bright sunlight conditions, unlike samsung's oled. The high pixel count is its strong point, making up for its weak point. Try using an ipad as opposed to an oled tablet on a beach, or for that matter en e-ink device, you simply can't use it. Soon oled too will go to such high resolutions btw.

Apple successfully colluded with book publishers to raise book prices and banish competition in booksellers prices via the agency model, thus taking away the kindle fire's main selling point, amazon's competitive prices. They have costed the consumer, destroyed competition among booksellers and hurt sales of competing tablets such as the nook and the fire. I hope the DoJ and EU legislators go hard on them.

It's not like they are spending that huge pile of cash they have nowadays anyway for something particularly innovative. And sticking a samsung high resolution screen on an ipad having a 5 year old phone interface is hardly innovative. Adding a beta voice product on the same phone design (ok, not really the same, this one actually has an antenna design that doesn't short circuit when someone uses the phone) isn't innovative either, nor is issuing a buggy bloatware of an os for your desktop. Come to think of it, I find it hard to remember any recent innovative product coming out of Cupertino.

The new mbp will be thinner (so what, that's the trend everywhere anyway) and by the looks of it the new imacs won't finally feature ergonomics that are not rubbish and they'll stick to an 8 year old design that has merely gone from a plastic to an aluminum enclosure. Oh but apparently they won't just stick untreated mirror like glass to it with glares but they 'll go with some antireflective treatment on it like old crt's used to have. Pretty innovative stuff...

 

[E.Lizardo]

So comparing 1Q12 to 4Q11:

The Kindle sold 4 million less than the holiday quarter.

The iPad sold 3.6 million less than the holiday quarter.


--

The Kindle Fire still is mostly a US domestic product, as well, while the iPad sells in many countries.

Yet they've NEVER revealed hard sales numbers.BS until they do.

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Looks like there may have been a lot of fire buyer's(or recipients) remorse after Christmas.

 

[ChrisTX]

I know a handful of folks that either returned their Fire or refused to get one based on the whole have to be logged in, doesn't ask for your password to buy stuff nonsense.

Yeah, that is just ridiculous. So many things wrong with the fire, I would't even know where to begin.

 

[twoodcc]

yeah the iPad is great. maybe this will put to rest those iPad Mini rumors

 

[blow45]

yeah the iPad is great. maybe this will put to rest those iPad Mini rumors

you are member here since 2005 and you still haven't figured out that apple will indeed come out with an ipad mini at the end of the year or so? What have you been doing for 7 years in getting under the skin and understanding how they work? I 'll wager you anything you want that they will.