Tablets to nearly double in 2013

Russell FeldmanHead of Client Services
September 11, 2012, 12:52 PM GMT+0

The number of tablets in UK households will nearly double in 2013, according to the latest report from YouGov’s Tablet Tracker.

Sales of tablets in the UK, particularly Apple iPads, are set to skyrocket in 2013, according to new research from YouGov’s Tablet Tracker.

Currently, YouGov estimates there are 5.87 million tablets in UK households, with individual ownership of tablets now reaching the 10% mark of the population. This is likely to increase to just over 10 million tablets by August 2013.

  • Of these tablets, Apple will have a 67% share, equating to 6.8 million tablets.
  • Samsung will increase its share in the market to 10% with 1.02 million tablets.

The potential sales are staggering:

  • Based on these numbers, Apple would have £2.7 billion sales from tablets alone (over three years).
  • Samsung would have around £356 million.

These projections are based on current individual and household ownership, current individual tablet owners looking to purchase another tablet, and future ‘hot prospects’ who are looking to purchase a new tablet within one year. The sales figures are based on the entry level Apple iPad (£399), and Samsung Galaxy Tab (£349).

Strong loyalty to the ‘Apple brand’ among iPad owners

Amongst Apple iPad owners is that if they do own another tablet in their household, it is likely to be an Apple. In contrast, those owners of other tablets are more likely to not have an iPad – amongst Samsung owners 18% had another tablet in their household and this was not an iPad.

Nearly two thirds of iPad customers have an existing relationship with Apple through the iPhone. The iPod is also effective in strengthening the relationship between consumers and the Apple brand due to the dominance in the MP3/4 category.

Of current tablet owners, 14% expect to purchase another tablet in the future – loyalty to brand is high here with Apple owners sticking with the brand, and all others selecting a range of other brands such as Samsung, Amazon and Microsoft

Of this 14%, over half expect to purchase within six months – the Christmas market could be huge in 2012, as we saw Christmas 2011 with the e-Reader market.

About the tablet study:

YouGov’s Tablet Tracker runs quarterly in the UK with the next wave due in November 2012. For wave 9 (august 12), we interviewed 3,472 respondents between 3rd – 9th August 2012. All interviews were conducted online with YouGov panellists. Each interview was approximately 20 minutes in length.

For more information please contact the press office or call YouGov on +44(0)20 7012 6015.

Find out more about Tablet Tracker and YouGov's Technology and Telecoms Consulting.