Are we falling out of love with tablets? Say it isn’t so, but the love affair may be over. Or at least it is fizzling. Our relationship with tablets began in the early 1990s when Apple released the several sizes of tablets. The expectation was that the trajectory of tablet sales would shadow sales trajectory of iphones and smartphones. Well, the experts were wrong! Smartphones, for various reasons, are unique. Why are tablets on the decline? Let’s take a closer look at this phenomenon.
- Many families question whether a tablet is a necessary, personal device or a luxury one that’s often shared. Instead of being a personal device that holds “all that we hold near and dear to our hearts,†tablets tend to be a community item in families. That means that instead of having one for each member, like smartphones, many families share the item – thus causing less demand for the once beloved tablet.
- Tablets do not have a defined use. Is the tablet a leisure device? A personal assistant? A workstation? It’s difficult to say. Without that identity it becomes a foggy ground as how to market this device.
- With the rise of the larger phone or phablet, who really wants a tablet? Think about it. It is not as easy to carry around. It doesn’t fit in your pocket. It is almost a redundant device with the larger screened smartphones. Take this info and combine with the fact that smartphones that have larger screens are faster and capable of so, so much more.
- Tablets need to be replaced at a slower pace. Phones get dropped and smash. Phones land in the toilet or puddle and are out-of-commission. Tablets, however, stay on the bedside table waiting for you to watch your next installment of Netflix. They tend to not need to be replaced as often thus adding to the decline in sales.
- The Apps are not as good as they once were. According to Time, almost all the best apps are already available on phones, and in some cases, only on phones. Developers have discovered that the only way to compete with such low prices (say, $0.99 or $1.99) is to produce at a mass volume, and the only device capable of selling in mass volume is the smartphone.
- Lack of competition for the tablet and, more specifically, the Apple iPad seems to be another determining factor in the decline of the tablet. Every year, the smartphone industry only seems to get more competitive, with Apple holding onto the high-end, Samsung clinging to the middle and upstarts, like Xiaomi, snapping up customers in the budget market. The competition just isn’t there for the tablet thus causing stagnation.
Categorised in: mobile issues