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Apple to keep tablet lead over Android in 2012, say analysts

Apple's new iPad will keep it ahead of the tablet pack this year, according to a report and research note.

Brooke Crothers Former CNET contributor
Brooke Crothers writes about mobile computer systems, including laptops, tablets, smartphones: how they define the computing experience and the hardware that makes them tick. He has served as an editor at large at CNET News and a contributing reporter to The New York Times' Bits and Technology sections. His interest in things small began when living in Tokyo in a very small apartment for a very long time.
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Brooke Crothers
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iPad 2 (L) with its 1024x768 display and the new iPad with the pixel-cramming 2048x1536 screen. That new display will keep the iPad in high demand, say analysts.
iPad 2 (L) with its 1024x768 display and the new iPad with the pixel-cramming 2048x1536 screen. That new display will keep the iPad in high demand, say analysts. Apple

Apple will hold onto a big chunk of the tablet market in 2012, according to a report from IHS-iSuppli and a research note from Deutsche Bank today.

Apple will take back a bit of market share lost to Android in the fourth quarter, while maintaining more than the 60 percent of the market in 2012, according to iSuppli.

iSuppli's key points for iPad in 2012--Rhoda Alexander, analyst:

  • 2012 market share: 61 percent, up from 57 percent in the fourth quarter, down one percentage point from the 62 percent share in 2011.
  • 2012 total tablet shipments: on track to reach 124 million units in 2012, up 90 percent from 65 million in 2011.
  • 2011 Android price slashing: Price cuts that accompanied the entry of the Kindle Fire from Amazon in the fourth quarter of 2011 "took a toll" on players in the Android market. "The shipment gains for Android tablets in the second half of 2011 were secured at the cost of a 41 percent decline in the average street price for Android tablets. Apple retained 74 percent of the revenue share of the tablet market in the fourth quarter of 2011, even as its unit share declined to 57 percent, down from 64 percent in the third quarter."
  • Windows 8 tablet competition: Arrival of Windows 8 on ARM chips postponed until 2013. Most of the Android competitors now regrouping. "IHS has lowered the media tablet forecast for Apple competitors in 2012."

Apple is positioned to extend its price-performance lead in the category, says Deutsche Bank.

Deutsche Bank's key points for iPad in 2012--Christ Whitmore, analyst:

  • Android, Windows have work cut out for them: "We believe competitors (Android and Windows) will have trouble matching the price-performance specs of the current iPad product lineup and [Apple] should continue to dominate the category...Win8 receiving mixed reviews and...Android in disarray."
  • Developers will like new iPad: Developers will flock to the iPad. "The retina display (2048x1536) with 44% greater color saturation combined with the quad-core graphics processor produces a tablet experience that is simply unmatched." A side-by-side comparison with the iPad 2 highlights the new iPad's performance advantages.

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