Tablet PC market share: iPad rules.

Two years after creating the market, Apple Inc. remains the king of all media tablets, with its global market share rising to nearly 70% in the second quarter, putting the company on pace to reclaim much of the dominance it surrendered in 2011.

During the second quarter this year, Apple shipped 17 million iPad 2 and new iPad media tablets, up from 11.8 million the first quarter, according to iSuppli Display Materials & Systems Service. This industry-leading increase in shipments translated into a market share gain of 11.5% points, as Apple’s second-quarter global tablet share climbed to 69.6%, up from 58.1% in the first quarter.

And you thought Samsung beat Apple Inc.'s iPad hands down with more Galaxy Tab variants in the market? Maybe one day, but for now iPad is the king.

Samsung, at any one time, has in its stable Galaxy Tab 7.7, Galaxy Tab 2(7.0), Galaxy Tab 2 (10.1), Galaxy Tab 8.9, Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus, and the upcoming Galaxy Note 10.1

Apple has single product, the iPad (the latest iteration being the New iPad). The reason for the overwhelming support for the iPad? Research shows that satisfied users are likely to go back to the same brand for their next purchase. It seems that Apple already has developed a solid future customer base, which will continue to strengthen barring a major stumble on an upcoming product release. The iPad Mini comes to mind.

Android and iOS devices battle it out.

There'll be 360 million Tablet Computers in 2016

This posting is not about comparing which brand is superior; it's just so we know how the tablet PC is expected to shape in the near future.

Today there are about 120 million tablet computers in the market. By 2016, it is estimated that this will triple to more than 360 million. This, in some way reinforce my contention in my previous article that there maybe possibility that tablet PC will make its way to schools in place of the heavy school bags. These tablet PCs could be the super text books in the near future.

New iPad (iPad 3) Price - Malaysia

Official pricing for the new iPad (iPad 3) for Malaysia has been released today, Friday 20th April 2012, by Apple.store.com. The initial prediction via extrapolation in my recent article overstated the prices by a small margin. But that made this official price release more of a good news than a bad one.

The following is the snapshot of apple.store's iPad page for everyone's record. You can also go to their website and order online. There is an ordering lead time of 5 to 7 business days.

Source: apple-store/my

Caveat: 

It stated in it's advertorial that this gadget is 4G LTE capable. While the specification is true, 4G LTE is supported only on AT&T and Verizon networks in the United States, and on Bell, Rogers, and Telus networks in Canada. Not in Malaysia.

Nevertheless, if our cellular network infrastructure can handle a bandwidth of up to 40Mbps, then you can still get a pretty fast surfing experience. Even the current wireless speed of 7.2Mbps is at 'best effort'. I rarely get more than 4Mbps on my Maxis broadband.


Update @25 April, 2012
Mobile phone shops and retailers are selling the new iPad at averagely RM300 more than the published figures on apple.store/my. My personal observation for Kota Kinabalu prices are as follows (both black and white colours are similarly priced):

iPad / WiFi + 4G / 16GB - RM2,199.00
iPad / WiFi + 4G / 32GB - RM2,499.00
iPad / WiFi + 4G / 64GB - RM2,799.00

Note: Most outlets offer free smart cover, leather or other material of equivalent cost, and screen protector.

Update @1 May, 2012: I finally received my unit, a 32GB Black WiFi+ 4G, for RM2,340.00. Not a very fair pricing, IMO, considering the published price of only RM2,199.00 at apple-store/my.

New iPad (iPad 3) Launched in Malaysia and compared with iPad 2 and Galaxy Tab 7.7

This is a scheduled entry in anticipation of the New iPad (iPad 3) launching date in Malaysia. As what came out in the mainstream media, launching of the New iPad in Malaysia is Friday, 20th April 2012.

Based on historical data of its pricing and referring to US and Singapore prices the followings are probable price structure for the new iPad. I stick to my earlier comparison and estimates in the previous article about the new iPad.

Let's see if this materialises:

		iPad2 (RM)	New iPad (RM)
WiFi	16GB	1,199.00	1,599.00
	32GB	1,499.00	1,899.00
	64GB	1,799.00	2,199.00
WiFi +4G	16GB	1,599.00	1,999.00
	32GB	1,899.00	2,299.00
	64GB	2,199.00	2,599.00

Note: Prices for iPad2 are current actual. [Update: get the latest updated New iPad prices here]

A brief comparison between the New iPad and Galaxy Tab 7.7, the latest  under Samsung's offerings:

The All New iPad (iPad3)

Excited about it yet?

The all new iPad from Apple was officially announced on 7th March 2012 and will be available to the US consumers beginning 16th March 2012. As always, they did not continue with the numbering sequence, instead they called it just iPad and for now, we'll call it the New iPad.

Image: store-apple.com

WHAT'S NEW

Resolutionary Retina Display

The typing error is intentional; it was meant for a revolutionary-high-resolution display. The new iPad is packed with stunning Retina display and probably making it the most pixel-packed tablet on the market. The screen size is similar to the iPad2 but packed with 3.1 million pixels in a 2048 x 1536 arrangement; claimed to have great improvement in color saturation.

5MP iSight Camera

Although only 5 mega pixel, the iSight camera is similar to the one fitted inside the iPhone 4S, with backside illumination sensor. If it is as good as the one in the 4S, then I will be the first to agree that the images captured are quite decent. I own a couple of compact cameras, a D90 and a D700 DSLR. The iPad lens assembly has five elements in it to capture the best possible image, and it is claimed to be capable of capturing 1080p HD video.

Super fast 4G connectivity

The new iPad boasts 21 mega bits per second (Mbps) HSPA+, with LTE radio capable of 73Mbps downlink on both AT&T and Verizon in the US, the home of Apple. In Malaysia though, we are just at the early stage of adopting 4G LTE technology. Case in point is Klang valley, although certain telcos claim to have 4G services in other cities. 4G connectivity is said to be up to 10 times the speed of 3G. It seems like this new gadget is way ahead of our telecommunication infrastructures.

And that's it! Nothing to shout about, really.

With technological advancement in the manufacturing of telecommunication and IT gadgets, newer product sporting a relatively similar feature or even a slight upgrade like the new iPad should be priced lower instead of going up. Or, at the very least maintained. Check the price movements in the following matrix:

		iPad2 (US$)	New iPad (US$)
WiFi	16GB	399.00	499.00
	32GB	499.00	599.00
	64GB	599.00	699.00
WiFi +3G	16GB	529.00	629.00
	32GB	629.00	729.00
	64GB	729.00	829.00

If you are a consumer like me, you will agree that the increase of US$100 (approx. RM300) for a slight tweak is not justified.

Comparing iPad2, New iPad, Galaxy Tab 7.7 and Galaxy Tab 8.9

So that we have some idea of what sort of progression the new iPad went through, I have compiled in the following Table my findings from the internet, mostly from Apple website. Just for comparison, the new super AMOLED Galaxy Tab 7.7 is pitted side by side, specification-wise, with the new iPad. See which one is worth the money and of course most importantly, better suited to you.

Note: The new iPad uses dual-core A5X processor, with quad-core graphics.

When our regular phone outlet receives their shipment next week, we'll be checking the Tab7.7 out to fiddle with features. Some say, you have to see it to appreciate the super AMOLED display.