Tablets of FAIL

In news, which isn't news, Apple is leading the tablet market. A recent customer survey shows that at least 85 percent of consumers think of Apple first when they think of buying a tablet. 

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - Nearly seven of every ten tablets sold between April and June of this year were Apple tablets. Change Wave Research conducted the survey.

While Apple gains ground, Android is losing market share. Between April and June, the sale of Android based systems fell from 34 percent to just below 27 percent. Android based tablet sales are forecast to fall even further during the third quarter. 

Although several rivals have emerged to take on Apple's dominance, they have disappeared almost as fast. Hewlett Packard removed its Touchpad tablet last month and just now, Sharp has cut its product line. Sharp's Galapagos tablet has had difficulty attracting apps, because it is so different from existing systems and the number of users is low. The company has terminated its 10.8-inch and 5.5-inch tablets, and is keeping its mid-sized 7-inch tablets, for the moment. The Galapagos system has only been in use since December. 

These failures are in spite of the increasing public hunger for tablet computing. Tablets are forecast to grow to 17.5 percent of the personal computing market in 2011. Apple is claiming the lion's share of the growing market.

Many users don't like this news. Not everyone likes Apple, and many prospective tablet buyers want a reasonable alternative. The market is wide open for anyone who can produce a cheaper, and equally functional tablet. Unfortunately, with tablets being discontinued almost as quickly as they are produced, users are having trouble putting their faith, and dollars, into competing designs, regardless of their quality.

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