Are tablets back? As Apple prepares new iPad launch, analyst report claims tablet sales reached new highs

Craig Hale
·2 min read
Young woman sitting alone using a tablet.
Young woman sitting alone using a tablet.

The latest quarterly data from Canalys has revealed a healthy boost in the tablet market, with Q1 2024 seeing a 1% year-on-year growth after four consecutive quarters of market shrinkage.

During the first three months of 2024, the analyst firm recorded a total of 33.7 million tablet shipments, slightly up from 33.4 million in Q1 2024.

Remarkably, a boost in shipments is partly thanks to new entrants into the market, with Apple’s market share decreasing from 42% to 36% in 12 months.

People are still buying tablets

Think of a tablet, and chances are you’ll think ‘iPad.’ However, with no new models since October 2022, Apple’s market share dropped by around 14% year-on-year, from 14.0 million to 12.0 million shipments.

Samsung maintained its 20% share, with the likes of Huawei, Xiaomi and HONOR all seeing healthy growth, and vivo and OPPO also entering the market.

Canalys Research Manager Himani Mukka commented on the positive start to the year for the tablet market: “Despite the extended period of cautious consumer spending on tablets, vendors have remained ambitious. New market entrants have kept investing in the category while the traditional heavyweights are delivering on innovation to excite customers and drive new use cases.”

One notable development highlighted by Mukka is Apple’s anticipated introduction of OLED technology in its higher-end iPads, such as the Pro models. After around one-and-a-half years of radio silence, Apple is finally expected to launch new iPad models at its May 7 ‘Let Loose’ event.

Mukka also suggested that foldable designs and eye-wear-free 3D content viewing could be a focus of tablet makers in 2024, along with 5G connectivity.

On the whole, the tablet market has been through a turbulent period, however these early signs of recovery combined with the more budget-friendly nature of tablets compared with PCs in today’s troubling economies could spell out continued growth in the quarters ahead.

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