Today an in-depth tablet PC study and infographic regarding the revolution of tablet computers has been released which contains some very interesting facts and statistics. For instance, did you know that 11% of all adults in the U.S. now own a tablet PC? This number is quite astonishing to say the least, especially considering the fact that the first tablet, the Apple iPad, only hit the market 18 months ago.
On a related topic, each day it appears more and more that we are quickly heading towards a post-PC era due to the introduction of tablets. Just to give you some proof and insight, during the second quarter of 2011 laptop sales staggered down to only 7.3 million units while during the same period a total of 13.6 million tablets were sold. That’s almost a ratio of 2 to 1 and the gap is only expected to widen even more come 2012 and 2013. For all of the tablet PC critics out there, still not convinced? Here’s an excerpt from a press release that surfaced last week in regards to research recently conducted by ABI Research:
This is a trend that we do not expect will reverse, …As they are different segments, this is not a direct replacement behavior, but a changing of leadership for the most interesting device type.
Although the infographic shown below relates more to slates and their impact on journalism and the news industry, it’s still fair to say that tablets are having a huge effect on several different market segments. It’s not far fetched or false to claim that tablets are becoming the most popular ultra-mobile device (UMD). Their introduction has sparked many new trends and have caused massive and sudden shifts in numerous types of markets all across the globe. All of this in a very short period of time while tablets such as the Apple iPad, Samsung Galaxy Tab and several others are still really just in their infancy.
We haven’t seen a revolution quite like this for a while. There’s absolutely no signs whatsoever that the rate of market growth in the tablet PC market as we know it will be slowing down anytime soon. In all fairness, and to avoid sounding too biased, this doesn’t mean we’ve seen the end of the MAC or home PCs (yet), such consumer electronic devices will exist for quite some time yet and will still have demand and purpose, they are just becoming a lot less popular and less of a requirement as time goes on.
Tablet computers still tend to appeal more to younger generations and “baby boomers” which remain the primary early-adopter consumers. A whopping 68% of tablet PC owners are the age of 49 or younger. These studies and facts are based on audiences residing in countries including Japan, the US, Western Europe, and South Korea. As a Canadian myself I’m a bit shocked that we aren’t on that list because each day I witness the same shift occurring here as well.
You know me, this is a topic I could blather on about all day long, but I’ll just wrap it up for now and let you have a look at the Tablet Revolution infographic below. Please share your comments, thoughts and opinions below with the rest of us and let us know what you think about these new trends taking place in the fast-paced and rapidly evolving mobile industry.
