Worldwide Tablet Market Continues to Decline; Vendor Landscape is Evolving, According to IDC

29 Jul 2015

FRAMINGHAM, Mass., July 29, 2015 – The worldwide tablet market declined -7.0% year over year in the second quarter of 2015 (2Q15) with shipments totaling 44.7 million units according to preliminary data from the International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Tablet Tracker. Marked by little hardware innovation and limited vendor portfolio updates, the market also declined -3.9% compared to the first quarter of 2015.

"Beyond the decline, we're seeing a profound shift in the vendor landscape as the top two vendors, Apple and Samsung, lose share in the overall market," said Jean Philippe Bouchard, IDC Research Director for Tablets. "In the first quarter of the year, Apple and Samsung accounted for 45% of the market and this quarter, with the growth of vendors like LG, Huawei, and E FUN, their combined share dropped to 41%. Each of the growing vendors managed to address available pockets of growth in the market; connected tablets for LG and Huawei, larger tablets and 2-in-1s in the right price bands for E FUN. This trend is also something we see on a wider scale with the top 5 vendors accounting for 54% of the market, down from 58% last quarter. It is worth mentioning that Huawei enters the top 5 ranking for the first time, while E FUN has re-entered the top 10 after more than a year, further indicating that the vendor landscape is indeed evolving."

Despite a continued decline in shipments for its iPad product line, Apple maintained its lead in the worldwide tablet market, shipping 10.9 million units in the second quarter. Samsung held its number 2 position in the market with 7.6 million units shipped and 17.0% market share in 2Q15. Lenovo maintained its third position with 2.5 million units and 5.7% share of the market. LG and Huawei ended the quarter in a statistical tie* for fourth place, rounding out the top 5 with each shipping 1.6 million devices. As previously mentioned, share outside the top 5 continued to outgrow the market, representing 46% of total tablet shipments in 2Q15.

"Longer life cycles, increased competition from other categories such as larger smartphones, combined with the fact that end users can install the latest operating systems on their older tablets has stifled the initial enthusiasm for these devices in the consumer market," said Jitesh Ubrani, Senior Research Analyst, Worldwide Mobile Device Trackers. "But with newer form factors like 2-in-1s, and added productivity-enabling features like those highlighted in iOS9, vendors should be able to bring new vitality to a market that has lost its momentum."

Top Five Worldwide Tablet Vendors - Preliminary Results for the Second Quarter of 2015 (Shipments in millions)

Vendor 2Q15 Unit Shipments 2Q15 Market Share 2Q14 Unit Shipments 2Q14 Market Share Year-Over-Year Growth
1. Apple 10.9 24.50% 13.3 27.70% -17.90%
2. Samsung 7.6 17.00% 8.6 18.00% -12.00%
3. Lenovo 2.5 5.70% 2.4 4.90% 6.80%
4. Huawei* 1.6 3.70% 0.8 1.70% 103.60%
4. LG Electronics* 1.6 3.60% 0.5 1.00% 246.40%
Others 20.4 45.60% 22.4 46.70% -9.30%
Total 44.7 100.00% 48 100.00% -7.00%

Source: IDC Worldwide Quarterly Tablet Tracker, July 29, 2015

Notes:

Total tablet market includes slate tablets plus 2-in-1 tablets. References to "tablets" in this release include both slate tablets and 2-in-1 devices.

***** IDC declares a statistical tie in the worldwide tablet market when there is less than 0.1% difference in the market share (based on shipments) of two or more vendors.

Chart: Top 5 WW Tablet Vendors, Unit Shipments (Millions), 2015Q2 Description: IDC's Worldwide Quarterly Tablet Tracker® fills the growing demand for detailed, timely, and accurate information on this new market for mobile connected devices. It provides insightful analysis, quarterly market share data, and a five-year forecast. The core of the product is a comprehensive Excel-based database tool detailing changes and trends in this market. Measurement for this tracker is in units, value, and ASP (end-user pricing). This tracker provides total market size and vendor share for the following technology areas and segmentations. Measurement for this tracker is in units, value, and end-user ASP. Product attributes covered: Product category: Media tablet and ereader CPU: ARM and x86 Operating system: Android, BlackBerry OS, iOS, Linux, webOS, Windows, and so forth Connectivity: 3G, 4G, WiFi, WiFi/3G, and WiFi/4G Screen size and resolution Storage (GB) Vendor Distribution channels: Vendor store, direct, retail, etailer, telco channel, and other resellers channel Customer segment: Consumer and commercial Link to IDC's WW Tablet Tracker: http://www.idc.com/tracker/showproductinfo.jsp?prod_id=81 Information contact Kathy Nagamine [email protected] Tags: Apple, Samsung, Lenovo, Huawei, LG, Tablet, 2-in-1, IDC, market, Share, top 5, 2in1, hybrid, detachable Author: IDC charts powered by iCharts

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About IDC Trackers

IDC Tracker products provide accurate and timely market size, vendor share, and forecasts for hundreds of technology markets from more than 100 countries around the globe. Using proprietary tools and research processes, IDC's Trackers are updated on a semiannual, quarterly, and monthly basis. Tracker results are delivered to clients in user-friendly excel deliverables and on-line query tools. The IDC Tracker Charts app allows users to view data charts from the most recent IDC Tracker products on their iPhone and iPad. The IDC Tracker Chart app is also available for Android Phones and Android Tablets.

For more information about IDC's Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker, please contact Kathy Nagamine at 650-350-6423 or knagamine@idc.com.

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