It has been nearly three years since the pandemic began, tablets are still in high demand for those working from home and in school. The latest report from the International Data Corporation (IDC) has revealed that although the fourth quarter of 2021 saw a steep decline of 11.9% when compared to Q4 of 2020. Total shipments grew by 3.2% when accounted for the whole year.
Let us take a look at the shipment numbers of top tablet and Chromebook manufacturers to figure out who came out on top in 2021.
Apple is still the dominant player in the tablet with its iPad offerings. The Cupertino giant retains the top spot 57.8 million total units shipped in 2021. The brand enjoyed a 34.% market share and also experienced an 8.4% yearly growth.
Apple has also shipped the most tablets in the 4th quarter of 2021 with 17.5 million tablets. Apple, however, experienced an 8.6% decline in shipments when compared to Q4 of 2020.
Lenovo came in third with 17.7 million tablets shipped in 2021, which amounted to a 19.2% yearly growth in comparison to 2020. the company shipped 4.6 million tablets in the last quarter of 2021. This was 1.6 million units more than the volume shipped in Q4 of 2020.
Amazon shipped 16.1 million Fire Tablets in 2021 giving it the fourth-largest tablet market share at 9.5%. The brand witnessed a 15.1% growth in comparison to 2020 and even enjoyed a positive growth of 1.3% in Q4 shipping year-on-year.
Huawei and Honor come in at the fifth spot who saw a 32.1% decline in shipments at 9.7 million units shipped in 2021. However, the initial decline in shipping volume stabilized in the last quarter of 2021, while the brand shipped 2.5 million tablets compared to 2.9 million shipments in Q4 of 2020.
The decrease in the yearly shipping numbers is due to the recent sanctions by the US which prevent the brand from doing business with any American companies like Qualcomm and even Taiwan’s TSMC, the leading contract manufacturer for chips in the world.
Despite the market moving past its peak demand for tablets, senior research analyst Anutoopa Nataraj has stated that the shipments will stay above pre-pandemic levels as virtual learning, remote work, and media consumption remain priorities for users.
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