While there were 1.4 million tablets sold in Australia over the last year, as a whole, sales are on the decline (by roughly 10 per cent). Android has seen the biggest hit – with a 29 per cent drop in the first half of 2016 alone.
And while absolutely thrashed on the smartphone stakes, analysts are predicting it’ll be Windows overtaking Android by the end of the year.
It’s not just consumers guiding the decline in Android-based tablet sales. The Telsyte Australian Tablet Computer Market Study 2017-2021 shows manufacturers are turning away from Android to focus on Microsoft Windows 10-based touchscreen devices.
Apple, Samsung, Microsoft and Lenovo still make up the top four tablet manufacturers, making up a combined 80 per cent of all tablets sold in Australia. Apple still absolutely dominates the market, with iPads making up almost half of all sales.
The move towards 2-in-1 tablets (including the iPad pro) is significant – they make up a third of tablet sales. This is good news for Windows, who have struggled with the smartphone market (bit of an understatement there).
“Microsoft seems to be redeeming itself with larger touchscreens despite losing the smartphone platform battle,” Telsyte Managing Director, Foad Fadaghi, says.
Telsyte reckons there will be 1.7 million tablets sold in the second half of 2017 – that’s seven per cent up on last year – as people start replacing their older devices.
For the purposes of the research, a “tablet” was defined as a computer device, with 7-inch or larger touch screen, that can be used without a keyboard or mouse. A “2-in-1” devices has a detachable or foldable keyboard (Microsoft Surface, iPad pro and Samsung Galaxy TabPro S included).