Apple to Tablet Competitors: We’re on Top of the Game!

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) continued to dominate when it comes to device shipments in the first quarter of 2012.

During the first quarter, 18.2 million tablet devices were shipped. This represents a 185 percent year-over-year growth, but a 33 percent decline in sequential shipments. Apple shipped 11.8 million iPads thanks to the launch of the third generation iPad and the pride reduction for the iPad 2. Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. claimed the number two spot, with 1.1 million units shipped, thanks to the decline of Amazon.com Inc.’s (NASDAQ:AMZN) Kinde Fire shipments.

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According to Jeff Orr, of ABI Research, the trend in tablets is following a trend previously seen in mobile phones,“Apple and Samsung have demonstrated staying power while other tablet vendors ebb and flow like the tide”. Only two major brands, Research In Motion Ltd. (NASDAQ:RIMM) and Lenovo Group Ltd. (LNVGY) broke the trend, showing gains in first quarter shipment. Several major players including Dell Inc. (NASDAQ:DELL) and Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE:HPQ)are reportedly preparing to take advantage of Google Inc.’s (NASDAQ:GOOG) Android 4.0 and Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ:MSFT) Windows 8 launch later this year.

Apple shipments claimed 65 percent of the tablet market and has 67 million units shipped during the first eight quarters of availability. Despite the success, Apple still falls short of the top spot when it comes to mobile broadband attach rates, with many users opting to use Wi-Fi on their devices.

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