If tablets are computers, Apple’s share of the global market now dwarfs its competitors
Deutsche Bank’s Chris Whitmore came away from this year’s Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas unimpressed with what Apple’s (AAPL) rivals had to offer in the way of tablet computers:
“2011 was supposed to be the year of the Android tablet. One year later, Android tablets have failed to meet expectations and for the most part have been unsuccessful. This year, tablets had a much smaller presence as vendors appear to be placing greater emphasis on Windows 8. We expect Windows 8 ARM tablets to ramps slowly as most Apps require rewriting for ARM-based tablet hardware. We remain skeptical that Win 8 tablets will gain much traction this year (App rewrites take time / developer ecosystem support). As a result, we expect the move away from Android tablet investment and a slow ramp of Win 8 tablets to create a favorable competitive backdrop for Apple’s forthcoming iPad 3.”
As if to underscore his point, Whitmore’s note to clients Friday included the above chart, showing what IDC’s picture of the global computer market would look like if the tracking firm counted tablets as computers.
UPDATE: Outsider‘s Sebastian Peistch has discovered a major flaw in Whitmore’s graph. When correctly drawn, he says, the chart should look like this:
