Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) reigns supreme once again, at least when it comes to selling tablet computers.
The results for the Q2 shares are out from IDC and the numbers indicate that Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is king. The number of tablet shipments totaled $25 million and Apple sold over $17 million iPads, a number that claims up to about 68% market share. Right now, tablet computer continue to sell at a higher rate than smartphones.
One of the key reasons for Apple’s success is that it doesn’t really have a competitor in the market. Sure, Amazon has the Kindle Fire (which runs on Android) and Google has Nexus 7 (along with many other underperforming tablets) but neither of them sell as many tablets as Apple nor do they have a dominance in the global market. Apple invented the tablet computer and everything else is essentially just a cheap imitation.
To be fair, the Kindle Fire has surprised many as proving to be a viable alternative tablet option for those on a serious budget. And Nexus 7 is still relatively new. Google did a huge disservice to their own brand as they didn’t manufacture enough tablets to meet the demands of consumers. Of course, it was easy to assume that most people wouldn’t want another cheap tablet on the market and perhaps that’s what made Google underestimate their product.
In October, Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) will release their first brand of tablets called Surface. These machines will run on Windows 8 and cost just about as much as Apple’s iPads. Right now, it’s too early to predict how their tablet computers will fair. If they’re anything like most Windows products, it’s safe to assume that their tablets won’t sell as well as Apple.
The numbers mentioned above show that Apple’s iPad isn’t going anywhere. Once again, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) set the standards and it’s going to take a lot more than just an attractive price to get people to buy.
