Tablet PC sales touch 1.1 mn unit in 3Q CY 2012

India's overall tablets market recorded sales of 1.1 million units in 3Q (July-September) 2012, with Samsung leading with a 23.9 per cent share of total sales, followed by Micromax with 15.3 per cent and Datawind with a 12.3 per cent in terms of sales (See: table 1).

The quarterly media tablets market review for 3Q 2012, December 2012 by technology research firm CyberMedia Research, indicates that the Indian tablets market has become one of the key drivers of data and content consumption in the country.

This is apparent from the fact that close to 135 vendors have launched their tablets till 3Q 2012.

The average sales value of tablets in India during 3Q 2012 was approximately Rs13,200, while 63.5 per cent of all sales were below the Rs10,000-mark.

Trending Features 
Some of the trending features in terms of specifications of media tablet devices in the India market during 3Q 2012 are shown in table 2.

"A majority of the tablets currently on offer have built-in Wi-Fi connectivity with 3G access enabled through a USB dongle," says Faisal Kawoosa, lead analyst, CyberMedia Research, telecoms pactice.

"However, going forward, increased penetration of 3G networks, declining ASVs of 3G-enabled media tablets and launch of BWA (4G / WiMax / LTE) services in the country is likely to see a rise in 3G-only tablet devices with larger screen sizes. This trend is expected to give a fillip to new types of data services and content being demanded and consumed by subscribers, which in turn will drive a further increase in adoption of media tablets in India."

According to Tarun Pathak, analyst, CyberMedia's telecoms practice, ''I expect this to be the last quarter that will show the kind of 'stereotype' ranking results typical to the India market. During  4Q 2012 and through 2013, we expect to see a change in the rankings, with global leaders like Apple and Google coming into their own, especially after the launch of the Apple Mini and Google Nexus range of Media tablets, respectively.''

''These new devices closely match the media tablets already available from other leading OEMs in India, in terms of specifications and price levels. This is particularly true of Samsung. So it will be interesting to watch if potential buyers of tablet PCs go for other MNC brands or whether Samsung is able to retain their loyalty,'' Pathak added.

Tablet PC market outlook for 2013

The tablet PC market is increasingly becoming one of the most dynamic consumer electronics product categories in India.  Year-on-year the form factor has surprised the industry with the highly visible adoption, uptake and usage. For the year 2013, CyberMedia Research (CMR) expects the following to be the highlights of the India tablet PC market:

• Windows 8 based media tablets will be the main highlight in the market. In 2013, India will witness tablet PCs being made available on MS Windows 8 from all leading OEMs. This is expected to bring about several changes in market dynamics such as OS shares, ASVs, etc.
  
• Enterprises will see increasing adoption of tablet PCs as part of the larger trend towards mobility. So far enterprises have been trying to understand the role of Tablets in the enterprise space. Through 2012, at different forums industry leaders were seen deliberating upon several industry vertical-focused use cases of Tablets and these are expected to be implemented in 2013. With bring your own device (BYOD) an increasing reality, this implementation will very likely to gain an impetus across verticals.
  
• At least a few OEMs are expected to announce LTE / LTE-ready tablets for the India market in 2013. Though not many tablets announced yet supporting LTE worldwide, but India, rightly poised at the juncture of an LTE 'big bang' can be an attractive destination for players who can meet the expectations of Indian customers across segments. Tablets are expected to gain traction as the preferred device for first time computing enthusiasts and for those seeking high data consumption applications over LTE networks.
  
• There could be some cleansing in the market for sub-Rs 5,000 tablets. 2013 is likely to see some of the players in this segment closing shop due to lack of market acceptability and increasing expectations of consumers, where these devices are bound to fail.
  
• 2013 will see markets crystallise around three price points for the India tablet PC market. These will be Rs5,000-10,000; Rs15,000-20,000 and over Rs35,000. Some vendors might have to undertake price corrections to fit their devices within these three price segments, to serve the market aptly and participate in these high-volume price levels.
  
• According to CyberMedia Research estimates, total shipments for the India tablet PC market are expected to close at 3 million units in 2012. Further, the market is expected to increase by at least 100% in 2013 (double the number of units sold in 2012). The key drivers for this are a large number of launches by OEMs eyeing the India consumer market for mobile computing and data communication products, as well as the demand expected to be generated via enterprise adoption of tablets. In case large deals are announced by vendors for supplies to the central / state governments for distribution to university, college and high school students, the forecast number of tablet sales for 2013 could easily exceed 6 million units.

Kawoosa says, ''To my mind two key developments are going to change the India media tablets market significantly - one is the availability of Windows 8 based devices and the adoption of tablets by enterprises for serious and real business applications.''

''The introduction of Windows 8 and its success, if any, will establish the availability of a second OS option for OEMs to develop new tablet PCs on. The adoption of tablet PCs by enterprises will change the way in which these devices are perceived at the moment. Tablets will most likely then come to be considered a mainstream device and be seen as much more than a novelty or for restricted use in the education, entertainment and infotainment segments. This will signal the arrival of the tablet as a mainstream business device.

Table 1. India quarterly media tablets market: 3Q (July-September) 2012*

*Source: CyberMedia Research (CMR) India Quarterly Media Tablets Market Review for 3Q 2012, December 2012
** Excludes sales of Aakash tablets to Govt. of India

Table 2. Key feature trends: India quarterly media tablets market, 3Q (July-September) 2012*

*Source: CyberMedia Research (CMR) India Quarterly Media Tablets Market Review for 3Q 2012, December 2012