Apple iPad represents genuine threat to laptops and netbooks

Worldwide tablet shipments hit 6.4 million during the first quarter of 2011, as the form factor continued to attract buyers over laptops and netbooks, according to figures from Canalys.

Apple's iPad continued to dominate the market, shipping 4.7 million units worldwide during the period.

In contrast, Canalys estimated that the Samsung Galaxy Tab shipped just over one million worldwide and 40,000 in the UK in the same period.

The Samsung Galaxy Tab did well considering that the product is at the end of its life and that the firm is expected to push on with the release of the Galaxy Tab 10.1in and 8.9in devices, according to Tim Coulling, an analyst at Canalys.

"Apple will continue to dominate the tablet market with the iPad as it offers the complete proposition with the iTunes and App Store ecosystems, but it will face increased competition in the coming months," he told V3.co.uk.

"Asus, Acer, Motorola and Samsung are among the challengers. However, these Android vendors will need to differentiate themselves, and the decision by RIM and HP to use their own operating systems could be advantageous."

Coulling said that it is too early to pick a winner, but noted that the BlackBerry PlayBook is shaping up to be a good investment for business users who already have BlackBerry phones.

The increased penetration of tablets meant that PC vendors continued to struggle in the first quarter. A total of 1.8 million laptops and 275,000 netbooks were shipped in the UK in the period, down seven per cent and 30 per cent year on year respectively.

"There is lots of pressure on the PC market in Europe due to an overstocked retail channel and economic uncertainty. Users have no compelling reason to go out and buy a new PC," Coulling said.

"Despite poor sales, netbooks still have a place in the market but the explosive growth seen during 2009/10 is over."

Coulling added that tablets such as the iPad are a genuine threat to PC vendors. At least 10 per cent of western European tablets owners claim to use over 24 different applications, according to survey carried out by Canalys in February.

This is spread across the communications, entertainment, leisure/lifestyle and financial/business sectors, the firm noted.

"This broad usage pattern reinforces the tablet's role as a general purpose computing device, and much more than just a consumption device," said Coulling.

"The tablet represents a real threat to PC and consumer electronics vendors, as it is capable of replacing devices in a range of other categories."