Published on the 11/06/2015 | Written by Beverley Head
A consumer led binge on tablets and phones over the holidays led to an all too predictable sales slump in the first quarter of 2015…
New figures from IDC Australia show that the Australian market for tablets and 2-in-1 devices tumbled 40 percent in the first quarter. While the post-Christmas drop in demand is a feature of the consumer technology landscape, IDC says that the 40 per cent figure was higher than even it expected.
It is, however, holding out some hope that corporate demand for tablet devices may reinvigorate the market. In the past, almost $9 out of every $10 spent on tablets and 2-in-1s has come from consumers’ pockets, lured no doubt by the entertainment options of the devices – but that is starting to shift as business looks to exploit employee mobility.
IDC said that while consumer shipments declined by 27 percent year on year, commercial shipments of the devices increased by 1.2 percent as enterprises began to deploy the systems in order to reap productivity benefits.
According to IDC, Tasmania Police’s pilot of 37 Acer Iconias saved it 280 hours and $2,600 over a period of six weeks.
IDC has also forecast that the recent Budget announcement that lifts the tax writeoff threshold to $20,000 for small businesses could drive demand.
Apple and Samsung still dominate the Australian tablet market with a combined market share of over 75 percent.
Apple, meanwhile, saw the popularity of its phones soar in the first quarter, when 49 percent of the 2.32 million mobile phones shipped in Australia bore its brand – well up on the 38 per ent market share it commanded in the comparable period a year ago.
According to IDC market analyst Joseph Hsiao; “Phablet adoption in Australia was catalysed by the introduction of the iPhone 6 Plus. Market share of phablets grew from 9 percent in 2014Q3 to 38 per cent in 2014Q4. Growth of phablets continued in 2015Q1, reaching a market share of 4 percent.”
IDC has forecast that by the end of the year one in every two smartphones sold in Australia will class as a phablet.
