iPad Sales Plummet as Tablet Market Faces Post-Boom Saturation
A few weeks ago, the CEO of the U.S. electronics chain Best Buy already predicted the end of the tablet boom. At that time, Apple’s quarterly figures (2nd quarter) also spoke clearly: 16 percent fewer iPads were sold compared to the previous year. Now, two more quarterly reports from the company have been released, and they too tell a clear story.
In the third quarter of the fiscal year 2014, the decline was 9 percent, and in the fourth quarter, it was 13 percent. After the second quarter saw sales drop for the first time, Apple had to admit to declines in tablet sales in three consecutive business reports.
If that wasn’t enough, the sales volume of around 12.3 million iPads in the past quarter is the lowest compared to 2011 (around 11.1 million tablets sold).
Bleak Signs for Tablet Manufacturers
These are certainly not good signs for the rest of the tablet market, as Apple remains by far the largest manufacturer of tablet computers. If sales are dropping so significantly here, it’s likely not much better for competitors. This isn’t particularly surprising, though, since the tablet market has exploded since the launch of the first iPad in 2010.
Such growth could not, of course, continue indefinitely. Especially since, at the latest with the release of the first Google Nexus 7, smaller and cheaper tablets have provided a quality market entry. Eventually, the market becomes saturated, especially when the average consumer no longer sees a sensible reason to switch to a newer model. Most customers don’t need a better camera or faster chipset, and, in truth, a pixel density of 160 ppi is perfectly sufficient for many people.
The faded boom is also noticeable at Google. The new Nexus products have not only been given unusual display sizes but are also fewer in number than before. Google had long offered two tablets, the Nexus 7 and 10, both of which have now been replaced by the Nexus 9.
Tablets are certainly not on the brink of extinction and have long secured a fixed place alongside notebooks and home computers. However, market saturation, as seen in the eBook reader market, ensures that the big rush is over, and further declines are likely in the near future.
Interestingly, one company is taking a bold step forward: a few weeks ago, Amazon introduced several new tablets and currently offers five different devices (four in Germany). Whether this strategy will pay off remains to be seen. Unfortunately, you have to rely on analyst estimates for this, as Amazon is known for not releasing sales figures, although it admitted a few months ago that Fire sales in Germany did not necessarily meet expectations.
