SA headed for 1m tablets

More than three quarters of a million tablets had been sold in South Africa by the end of September, and that number could reach a million by the end of 2012, writes ARTHUR GOLDSTUCK.

By the end of this year, a million tablets may have been sold in South Africa.

Total sales up to the end of September, well before the arrival of either Windows 8 or the iPad mini and iPad with Retina Display, had reached 788 000.

This number includes around 20 000 ‚”grey market‚” iPads sold during 2010, but the rest represents sales since January 2011.

Apple is by far the largest player in the tablet market, with 50% market share. Samsung comes in a distant second with 33%, and Huawei an even more distant 7.5%. The rest of the market barely makes up 10% tablet share.

The estimated number of tablets sold in South Africa is based on interviews with retailers, distributors, and marketing representatives of major brands.

Tablet brand

Total sold in SA

Apple iPad

395 000

Samsung

265 000

Huawei

60 000

Telefunken Tpad

25 000

Wise Touch

10 000

Acer

10 000

HTC Flyer

10 000

Other

13 000

Total

788 000

The infographic below is produced by Khalil Aleker (follow him on Twitter on @KhalilAleker)

* Arthur Goldstuck is managing director of World Wide Worx and editor-in-chief of Gadget.co.za. Follow him on Twitter or Pinterest on @art2gee