'India sells 3.11 mn tabs in 2012'

The Tablet buzz is getting louder for digital consumers in India.

In the fourth quarter of 2012 (October-December) 1.09 million such devices were sold in the country, accounting for 35.3 per cent of total shipments for the entire year.

Shipments for the full calendar year (CY) 2012 clocked 3.1 million units, said a report on Tablet devices by CyberMedia Research.

"The year 2012, particularly the last two quarters, was significant for the Indian Tablet market.

"The market for these devices grew substantially in 2012, particularly in the second half which made up 70 per cent of sales," said Faisal Kawoosa, lead telecoms analyst, CMR.

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Tablets were first launched in India in October 2010.

Since then, such devices have seen rapid changes, particularly with the emergence of the 'Phablet' segment.

In 2012, 'Phablets' constituted 16.5 per cent of total sales and this trend is expected to strengthen.

CMR defines a Tablet as a computing device with a screen size of seven inches and above, and Phablet with screen size of five-inches and more.

More, the user profiles, market dynamics and product orientation of 'Phablets' are very different from those for Tablets.

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In the light of these trends, CMR has decided to re-segment the tablet market in two separate segments -- Phablet and Tablet -- starting CY13.

According to the existing CMR definition, Samsung leads the India Tablet market (5-inch screen size and above) for CY12 and Q4 2012, followed by Micromax.

Tarun Pathak, telecoms analyst, CMR, said, "Samsung has been able to maintain the lead in the market only because of the first-mover advantage, with the Galaxy Note and the Galaxy Note II.

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"But this is not a sustainable strategy in the long term, as it has resulted in creation of the new 'Phablet' form factor, attracting competitors at both ends of the price spectrum to follow suit.

"With the entrance of Apple at the top end and multiple Chinese and Indian players at the entry-level, the Phablet segment is only going to see increased competition in future."

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However, the market share index changes drastically when the device segment is divided between Tablets and Phablets.

Micromax leads the Indian Tablet vendor market rankings for CY12 and Q4 2012 in the Tablet with screen size of seven inch and above category.

For CY2012, Micromax leads with a market share of 17 per cent, followed by Apple (10.9 per cent) and Samsung (10.4 per cent).