Table of Contents
Executive Summary
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- The issues
- Stagnating adoption
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- Figure 1: US tablet sales, at current prices, 2011-16
- Three quarters of owners acquired tablet in 2014-16
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- Figure 2: Year of tablet acquisition, July 2016
- Apple, Samsung gain share
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- Figure 3: Brand ownership, November 2013-April 2014 vs October 2015-June 2016
- Tablets hemmed in by phablets, laptops
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- Figure 4: Interest in new tablet vs new phone or new laptop, July 2016
- The opportunities
- Bigger better, convertibles best
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- Figure 5: Reason for purchasing a new tablet, July 2016
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- Figure 6: Tablets as productivity tools and preference for keyboards, July 2016
- The gift market
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- Figure 7: Receipt of tablet as a gift, by gender and age, July 2016
- Pester power
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- Figure 8: Purchase of tablet for children to use, by age of children in household, July 2016
- What it means
The Market – What You Need to Know
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- Market falls below 2012 sales
- Gifting central to low-end
- Smartphones/laptops provide competitive environment
Market Size
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- Media consumption unlikely to reverse declining sales
- In their own words:
- Focusing on the interface
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- Figure 9: US tablet sales, at current prices, 2011-16
Market Factors
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- Figure 10: Current and desired uses for tablets, July 2016
- Gift purchasing
- One in eight owners received tablet as gift
- In their own words
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- Figure 11: Receipt of tablet as a gift, by gender and age, July 2016
- One in five parents bought tablet for child
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- Figure 12: Purchase of tablets for children to use, by selected demographics, July 2016
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Market Perspective
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- Tablets sandwiched between phone and laptop
- In their own words:
- Preferences cross age groups
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- Figure 13: Preference for laptops and phones above tablets, by age July 2016
- Phone sales triumph over tablets
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- Figure 14: Unit sales of tablets, smartphones, and laptops, 2011-16
Key Players – What You Need to Know
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- iPad, Galaxy, Fire carry 80% of ownership
- Surface to emerge from second-tier brands
- Tide turning toward higher-price products
What’s Working?
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- Half of owners have an iPad
- In their own words:
- Samsung rising
- Falling fire
- In their own words:
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- Figure 15: Brand ownership, November 2013-April 2014 vs October 2015 - June 2016
What’s Struggling?
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- Diverse range of Android tablets fight for share
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- Figure 16: Brand ownership, November 2013-April 2014 vs October 2015 - June 2016
What’s Next?
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- Pro sizes
- Hybrids spark repurchase interest
- Tablets productive, but majority prefer keyboard/mouse UI
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- Figure 17: Tablets as productivity tools and preference for keyboards, July 2016
- Panelists prefer tablets with detachable keyboards
- In their own words:
- Market for high-end broadening
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- Figure 18: Amount spent on most recent tablet, by year of acquisition, July 2016
The Consumer – What You Need to Know
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- Upgrades more critical than first-time purchases
- Little effort in selection process
- Improved speed leading reason to upgrade
- Price points a problem
Ownership and Intent to Purchase
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- Adoption no longer engine of growth
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- Figure 19: Tablet ownership, April 2013 - July 2016
- Groups most likely to own most likely to buy
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- Figure 20: Tablet ownership and intent to purchase, by Hispanic origin, July 2016
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- Figure 21: Tablet ownership and intent to purchase, by gender and age, July 2016
- Figure 22: Tablet ownership and intent to purchase, by parental status, July 2016
- Dads top target
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- Figure 23: Intent to purchase, – CHAID – Tree output, July 2016
Price Paid
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- High-end historically niche arena
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- Figure 24: Amount spent on most recent tablet, July 2016
- Hispanics spend more
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- Figure 25: Amount spent on most recent tablet, by household income, July 2016
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- Figure 26: Amount spent on most recent tablet, by race and Hispanic origin, July 2016
- Figure 27: Amount spent on most recent tablet, by gender and age, July 2016
Selection Process
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- Limited research the norm
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- Figure 28: Factors in tablet selection, July 2016
- High-end buyers note ads, visit stores
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- Figure 29: Factors in tablet selection, by amount spent on tablet, July 2016
- Young men more open to persuasion
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- Figure 30: Factors in tablet selection, by gender and age, July 2016
Reasons to Upgrade
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- Speed, battery life, and storage top of mind
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- Figure 31: Reason for purchasing a new tablet, July 2016
- Interest in hybrids, screen size shared across demographics
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- Figure 32: Reason for purchasing a new tablet, by selected demographics, July 2016
Appendix – Data Sources and Abbreviations
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- Data sources
- Sales data
- Consumer survey data
- Consumer qualitative research
- CHAID analysis
- Abbreviations and terms
- Abbreviations
- Terms
Appendix – Market
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- Figure 33: US sales of tablets, at current prices, 2011-16
- Figure 34: Number of US households, by presence of children, 2005-15
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Appendix – Consumer
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- Figure 35: Tablets as productivity tools vs toys, by year of acquisition, July 2016
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- Figure 36: Intent to purchase a tablet or hybrid product – CHAID output, July 2016
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- Figure 37: Factors in tablet selection, by household income, July 2016
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- Figure 38: Current uses for tablets, by age, July 2016
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- Figure 39: Current uses for tablets, by gender, July 2016
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- Figure 40: Current uses for tablets, by hispanic origin, July 2016
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- Figure 41: Current uses for tablets, by household income, July 2016
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