Product Launches – New iPad3 to Have

Limited Impact
Euromonitor International
05 March 2012
Apple Inc will be holding a product launch on 7 March for its new iPad tablet. While the new iPad will almost
certainly be well received by consumers, Euromonitor International believes that its impact on the tablets market will
be limited.

See and touch

Chart 1

left

Sales of tablets are expected to overtake those of laptops to become the most popular computing device in 2014, and
the iPad should take full credit for creating the market.
When the first iPad was launched in 2010, Apple showed the world (and particularly Microsoft Inc) how to design a
touch interface for large screen products. The concept of an ultra-portable computing device was not new and
Microsoft and other computer manufacturers had been trying for years without much success. The iPad went on to
dominate the tablet market and set a benchmark for all tablet manufacturers in terms of battery life, pricing, eco-
system and ease of use. It took Android close to a full calendar year for its honeycomb OS, which is designed for
tablets, to be available on Motorola Inc's Xoom tablet.

New darling
Microsoft Inc will be launching its Windows 8 operating system in the second half of 2012. One of Windows 8's key
highlights is the new Metro-style interface designed for touchscreen, mouse, keyboard and pen input. It also supports
the ARM processor architecture which smartphones and tablets are running, in addition to the traditional x86
microprocessors for computers.
The impact of tablets running on Windows 8 will kick-start and give the already burgeoning tablets and the flagging
laptops market a further boost. Corporate clients and consumers who want a consistent PC-like experience will now
be able to enjoy the seamless move from their desktop computers and laptops to tablets and even smartphones.
Windows is a familiar operating system for most home and corporate users. The seamless transition is a user demand
that Google Inc was well aware of when it launched its Chrome browser for tablets and smartphones. The new
browser allows the user to sync open pages and bookmarks from desktop and laptop to smartphone and tablet.

iPads still dominant

The iPad 2 is already a great device and Apple is set to make a great product merely incrementally better. That said,
the new iPad will not be able to generate the same kind of excitement as the first iPad announcement.
While Windows 8 is expected to attract more attention than the new iPad in 2012, Microsoft and other tablet
manufacturers running on Android will not be able to knock iPad off its perch this year. Not yet. However, the full
impact of Windows 8 and Android (Ice Cream Sandwich and the rumoured Jellybean) will be evident in 2013 as
Android overtakes Apple's iOS as the most popular operating system for tablets.

Chart 2 Table 1: Tablets by Operating System (OS) Share

Euromonitor International
Preliminary forecast for developed markets

A big enough pie for everyone

Sales of tablets will exceed 120 million units in 2013 and the market is certainly set to continue to grow. The fact
that a single company, Apple Inc, will be able to command more than one third of the burgeoning tablet market in
2013 is nothing short of amazing. The reality is that the sum of all parts is greater than the whole and the collection
of tablets running on Android from other manufacturers like Samsung, Amazon and Huawei is set to displace iPads
by sheer number.
For further insight, please contact Wee Teck Loo, Head of Consumer Electronics Research at Euromonitor
International, at weeteck.loo@euromonitor.com.sg.