iPad owners older and richer than other tablet owners, says study

Own an iPad? Then there's a good chance you're old and rich, uh, well, at least older and richer than other tablet owners.

A new study from the folks at NPD Group claims that iPad owners tend to be older and make more money than their non-iPad peers. Among the people polled who bring home an income of $100,000 or more, 40 percent were iPad owners while only 26 percent owned other types of tablets.

Those buying tablets toward the end of 2011 were 50 percent more likely to have an income less than $45,000, while 33 percent were more likely to be under 34 years old.

Whatever their ages and incomes, tablet buyers still see the need for the old-fashioned PC.

Only 10 percent of the tablet owners surveyed said they don't need a laptop. Among those who don't already own a tablet, 18 percent said they plan to buy one this year, but 26 percent are looking to pick up a laptop.

"Even as consumers increasingly use tablets for tasks that were once exclusively done on their PC, they continue to plan new PC purchases," NPD analyst Stephen Baker said in a statement. "Usage is still evolving and most people, being inherently conservative in their device outlook, continue to hedge their bets on their device preference by planning to maintain an array of products to afford them maximum flexibility."

To compile its study, NPD surveyed around 4,700 people in December. Out of the group, 3,600 were tablet owners with 2,570 of them iPad owners and 1,030 owners of other tablets.

Updated 12:30 p.m. PT with details on the number of people surveyed.