Mumbai: The Indian computer tablet market reported its strongest quarter of growth in 2014 at 10% in the three months ended 30 September, with 0.94 million units sold, market researcher International Data Corp. (IDC) said on Friday.
In comparison, the Indian tablet market grew by 9% in the June quarter, with 8,60,000 units sold. IDC attributed this growth to strong festive season buying and strengthening of commercial demand.
“The initial phase of impulsive buying seems to have faded, as the consumers are more aware of the use case of tablets now. Therefore the current size of the market looks more realistic and stable,” said Tanvi Mann, market analyst, IDC India.
With over 90% market share in the September quarter, the Android operating system is expected to dominate the market in the foreseeable future as well, said the IDC report, with Windows-based tablets priced under $200 expected to accelerate the adoption rate, although from a low base.
“Due to continuous onslaught from the phablets (which IDC defines as touch screen phones that are sized between 5.5 in to 6.99 in), small-screen tablets are taking a hit and there is more uptake on tablets which are screen sized between 8-9 inches. This has, however, led to an overall improvement of the average selling price for the category,” said Kiran Kumar, research manager, client devices, IDC India.
In terms of the top three tablet vendors in India in the quarter, Samsung continued to lead with a 22.2% market share, while Micromax retained its second position with a 10.9% market share, and iBall came a close third with 10.6%.
IDC predicts a slower growth for tablets in the December quarter, while 2015 is expected to see more growth in the commercial tablet segment compared with the consumer market, driven by government projects and government-aided education projects.
“We are likely to see increased activity by personal computer original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) in the tablets space with a focus on the 7 in and 8 in form factor,” added Mann.
On last Wednesday, IDC said India became the fastest growing market for smartphones in Asia Pacific in the three months ended September, growing by 82% from the year-ago period with 23.3 million smartphones shipped.
