Date: 22nd July 2010
ABI Research: Tablet shipment to touch 11 Million in 2010
ABI Research estimates about 11 million tablet PCs are
expected to be ship by the end of 2010 almost tripling the
estimate that was made. This is due to the delayed introduction
of iPad and other competing products. However ABI Research's
long term estimates remain the same.
"Our forecast of 11 million media tablet shipments
in 2010 is based both on the broader availability of the
iPad and on the delayed introduction of competing products,"
says ABI Research principal analyst Jeff Orr. "Assuming
that competing tablets from other vendors do arrive in the
second half of the year as expected, we believe that the
iPad will account for a significant portion - but not all
- of the projected 11 million units. To capitalize on the
usual fourth quarter sales boom, other tablets need to reach
retailers' shelves by early September."
Orr suggests that the media tablet segment is still far
short of a "mass market" and that a market size
justifying that term probably won't be reached before 2013.
Much depends on Apple's distribution reach, which is still
quite limited, and the relative success of its eventual
competitors.
A number of competing tablets were to have been launched
by now, but the global recession, implemention of the most
suitable operating system, and the challenge of matching
the iPad's user experience have all caused delays.
"The buzz around tablets has implications for other
parts of the consumer electronics market," Orr continues.
"In particular, the surge in interest in media tablets
is impacting the MID (Mobile Internet Device) category.
Most of the volume that we've projected for the MID category
since 2007 is now being taken over by other device form
factors: media tablets, but also smartphones, which are
assuming more and more of the functionality that was envisioned
for these 'non-voice handsets'."
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