“Despite the sudden downturn in shipments, Tablets are
certainly here to stay. Yes, they have matured and commoditized quickly, but
there are still opportunities for vendors to profit from the category”
Senior Analyst at
Canalys Tim Coulling, commenting on the Global fall in Tablet shipments
It’s time for me to play the part of Chicken Little and run
around saying “The Sky is falling”. Only this time, it's not the sky, but Tablets.
So says the analyst Canalys; shipments for Tablets have
fallen globally by 11% year on year as reported in the article “Tablet
sales continue to slide – Canalys”, published 12 AUG 2015, Mobile World Live.
From August 2, 2015 |
Senior Analyst at Canalys Tim Coulling says interest in Tablets
had peaked way back in 2013. From then on, sales have been in a freefall along
with PC sales as predicted by the stats firm analyst IDC and chronicled in my blog article
entitled “IDC
Stats suggest Tablet Freefall in 2015 – How to sell Tablets using built-in
Keyboards and Carrier Unlocked SIM Cards”.
This is mainly due to the prevalence of Chinese “White
Label” Tablets, such as the US$144 Alcatel OneTouch POP 7, which is great for
children as a first tablet as explained in my blog article
entitled “Why
the US$144 Alcatel OneTouch POP 7 is the perfect Educational Tablet”.
So far up until July 2015, only 42.5 million units worldwide
have been sold. Sales of the Apple iPad are still strong in the five (5)
regions of the world, except for Brazil.
A Tablet apocalypse is coming as noted in “Tablet
shipments continue to fall worldwide”, published August 12, 2015 by Andrea
Chang, Los Angeles Times, Physorg.
These top regions for the Apple iPad are as follows:
1.
US
2.
China
3.
UK
4.
Japan
5.
Brazil
According to Senior Analyst at Canalys Tim Coulling, Apple
is leading in all but one market, Brazil, quote: “The top five countries (US,
China, UK, Japan and Brazil) accounted for half the world’s tablet shipments
and Apple led in all but one, Brazil. It is well placed to continue leading the
market for the time being”.
If Apple dies, so do the other name brand tablets; their
futures are interlinked!
So how can Apple and other branded tablet makers halt the
slide?
Tablets Sales fell
by 11% globally - How e-SIM and 5G Data Plans can revive branded Tablets
In my blog article
entitled “IDC
Stats suggest Tablet Freefall in 2015 – How to sell Tablets using built-in
Keyboards and Carrier Unlocked SIM Cards”, I'd predicted that what was needed
was Carrier Unlocked SIM Cards and Tablets with built-in keyboards.
Tablets are computers, not smartphones, so people are not
inclined to upgrade as often as they do smartphones. Also phablets can do what Tablets
and smartphones can do, making it pointless to have two separate devices. Also,
despite my own reasoning, you can connect via Bluetooth to make calls without
pulling out your phablet.
Carrier unlocked SIM are already in the works, with both
Apple and Samsung already in talks with the GSMA (Global Systems Mobile Association)
to introduce e-SIM a reported in my blog article
entitled “GSMA's
e-SIM Card - Why e-SIM marks World Phone Genesis and Death of
unlocked-smartphones”.
Not only are e-SIM a herald for Carrier Unlocked smartphones
that can work on multiple Networks without making other versions, a handset
maker's delight, but it may also give the customers freedom of choice and the
Telecom Providers a little more leverage.
For Tablets, it'll mean being able to buy a Tablet and a
Data Plan from any Telecom Provider and thus be able to change Network as they
please, just like owning a computer.
Stay tuned to that developement as the revolution in Telecom
may mean the end of Contract plans as well!!!
Google Chromebooks
and 2-in-1 Detachable Tablets - Hybrid Tablets with keyboards rescue Branded Tablets
Tablets with Keyboards are basically hybrid Tablets that
have almost the same computing power as a Laptop like the 10.1” Asus
Transformer Book as detailed in my blog article
entitled “10.1”
Asus Transformer Book T100HA hybrid laptop – Chromebook killer with 15” Macbook
Pro stylings”.
Typically referred to as 2-in-1 Detachable Tablets due to
their tablet screen being separate from a portable keyboard, they have remained
underlings as Laptop makers have been reluctant to boost the power of cheaper Tablets,
fearing that it'll kill off their Laptop business.
But with BOTH Tablet and Laptop sales falling out of the
sky, many Laptop makers such as Asus and Hisense have decided to expand their
hybrid laptop offering, treating them like bonafide
Laptops.
They're taking their cues from Google Chrome OS and
Chromebooks, many of which are slimmed down Laptops with Tablet-like specs and
a growing fanbase as noted in my blog article
entitled “@Google
launches Google Chromebit, Haier and Hisense Chromebook and @Asus Chromebook
Flip - @Microsoft Productivity vs @GoogleChrome OS low Price”.
They've also decided to not only make hybrid Tablets, which
specs wise are basically Chromebooks but with a detachable screen, but to also
give them the computing power of Laptops!
So it’s really a Pc Apocalypse!
Strategy Analytics
predicts 91% growth rate in Hybrid Tablets - PC makers taking their cues from
Chromebooks
So far, it seems to be working, according to the latest
statistics from Strategy Analytics, which forecasts a 91% growth rate for
hybrid Tablets as predicted in the article “2-in-1
Tablet Sales Taking Off, says Strategy Analytics”, published Aug. 13, 2015,
PRNewswire.
Already HP, Acer and Asus, who've already been tapping into
Google Chromebooks are not taking a serious look at hybrid Tablets. This is based
on the rapid growth of the Chromebooks among the K-12 schools in the US of A as noted
in my blog
article entitled “IDC
Stats say Google Chromebooks dominates U.S. K-12 School System - 1 TB Free
Google Drive as MicrosoftHP Stream and 12.9-inch Apple iPad in 2015”.
Strategy Analytics is predicting some incredible projections
for their growth by 2019:
1.
57% five-year CAGR (compound average growth rate) for
2-in-1 Detachable Tablets
2.
2% five-year CAGR (compound average growth rate) for
Regular Tablets
Strategy Analytics is projecting a 4% decline in Tablet
sales for 2015, echoing the sentiments of analyst Canalys. Already, there are
some early indications that these projections might come to pass!!
Microsoft Surface
is the Canary for Hybrid Tablets - How e-SIM and 5G will cause Hybrid Tablets
explosion by 2020
The success of the Microsoft Surface Pro 3 Tablets is thanks
to its detachable design, more laptop-like computing power and useful Microsoft
Office Productivity suite of software as noted in the article “3
Reasons Why Microsoft's Surface Pro 3 Is A Winner”, published 8/03/2015 by
Gene Marks, Forbes.
Microsoft Surface Pro 3 a strong indication of the coming
growth of Hybrid Tablets and Windows 10, especially as they'll be packin'
Windows 10 by October 2015 as reported in the article “Microsoft
upgrades its Surface Tablets to Windows 10”, published August 4, 2015 by
Lance Whitney, CNET News.
Proof that you don't need Google Android to make Tablets
that people wish to purchase; you just need a Tablet that can replace your
laptop!
Combined with the coming of e-SIM thanks to the GSMA and 5G
Internet based on the ITU (International Telecommunication Union) IMT-2020
Roadmap as detailed in my blog article
entitled “ITU
publishes 5G IMT-2020 Roadmap - Why US Telecom Providers, @Digicel_Jamaica and
@LIMEJamaica like to travel off the beaten Path” and the Strategy Analytics
prediction of an explosion in Hybrid Tablets before 2020 is spot on!
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