Apple iPad Outsold By Android Tablets For First Time Ever In Q2 2013

In the second quarter, more Android tablets shipped worldwide than Apple iPads for the first time. While Apple still sold the most tablets, its domination of the tablet market slipped from 71.2 percent a year ago to 42.7 percent.

Apple sold a total of 14.6 million iPad units in Q2 2013. Coming in second was Samsung with 7.3 million tablets, and increase of 294.8 percent from the year-ago quarter. The rest -- Amazon, Lenovo and Acer -- also each saw drastic increases in sales.

Overall, the tablet market continues to grow rapidly. The total amount of tablets sold increased 42.9 percent from Q2 2012 to 34.2 million units.

“Tablets are now mainstream products and hardware innovation is increasingly difficult,” James Wang, an analyst for Canalys, told Apple Insider. “With branded Android tablets available for less than $150, the PC market has never been so good for consumers, who are voting with their wallets.”

Although the company has lost some of its market share, Apple is still winning in terms of usage and profitability. Apple CEO Tim Cook claimed that 84 percent of tablet usage is done with an iPad.

The increasing competition could drive Apple to consider a lower-cost iPad in the future. Most people expect Apple to introduce a low-cost version of the iPhone soon to compete with Android smartphones.

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