Wednesday 26 June 2013
iPad mini takes gold in iOS sales, accounts for 60% in early 2013
Apple's iPad mini has been selling like hot cakes according to figures released by analyst house Gartner, claiming that the tiny tablet was responsible for 60% of iOS sales between January and March.
The figures come from Gartner's regular look at the global devices market, totting up sales of smartphones, tablets, laptops and PCs.
We're still going crazy for tablets, the figures suggest, but buyers' focus is shifting from premium slates to cheaper options, with Garner saying that basic tablets like the iPad mini and Google Nexus 7 are expected to shoot up in popularity even more quickly than expected.
Life cycles of the rich and famous
But the analyst house also sees demand for both tablets and smartphones slipping as people opt for devices that will last longer and need upgrading less frequently.
Things are still looking fairly gloomy for PC and laptop sales, which have slipped further, although 'Ultramobiles' like Ultrabooks, hybrid devices, Windows 8 tablets and Chromebooks, have shot up in popularity and are expected to continue to grow.
It's good news, too, for Android, which retains its crown as most popular operating system across PCs, tablets, smartphones and notebooks; in second place comes Windows, while Apple's Mac OS and iOS software take third.
