The latest global tablet market report from Canalys is out, and the research firm's findings and estimates for 2024 couldn't be more bittersweet for both the industry's gold and silver medalists.
These are unsurprisingly the same number one and number two vendors from 2023 (and 2022, and 2021, and 2020), and while their worldwide sales figures were up year-on-year both in Q4 and 2024 as a whole, their improvements this time around fell short of the achievements attained by the market's third, fourth, and fifth-largest players.
Watch out for Xiaomi!
Does anyone here remember the "iPad-esque" Android slates Xiaomi unveiled just a little over three months ago? Well, China-based consumers definitely paid attention to that announcement, flocking to local stores to propel the brand in the global top five both between October and December and as far as the entire last year is concerned.
Thanks primarily to the Pad 7 Pro, Xiaomi managed to boost its Q4 shipment scores by more than 50 percent, but clearly, that was not the company's only hugely successful tablet in 2024. That's because Xiaomi's full-year sales results jumped by an even more remarkable 73.1 percent from 2023, leaving Amazon behind and threatening Huawei and Lenovo's positions in the global ranking.
Apple was technically the winner of the Q4 2024 global tablet wars, but in a way, Xiaomi won even bigger.
If the China-based outfit can maintain this monumental growth rate (even partially), there's obviously a very good chance we'll see a podium change this year. Perhaps even as early as this quarter.
Of course, Xiaomi is unlikely to (ever) threaten Apple's industry supremacy despite the comparatively modest 2024 growth of the iPad lineup. The Cupertino-based tech giant increased its tablet shipments by only 5.3 percent last year compared to 2023 and by 13.8 percent during the October-December 2024 quarter compared to the same timeframe of the previous year.
It's not every year that you see all the market's top five vendors boost their sales numbers like this.
Those may not sound like very impressive numbers, but they were still enough to push iPad sales to a Q4 total of nearly 17 million units and a 2024 tally of 56.9 million. Now those are some pretty mind-blowing figures, especially when you look at Samsung's scores in second place.
Interestingly, Samsung had a similar but opposite year to Apple (if that makes sense), improving its tablet sales less in Q4 than 2024 as a whole rather than the other way around. For the time being, the company behind such box-office hits as the Galaxy Tab S10 Plus, Tab S9 FE, and Tab S6 Lite holds a comfortable advantage over Huawei and Lenovo, but Xiaomi could get close to that number two spot in the relatively near future.
Will the market continue to expand?
After surprisingly thriving in the early stages of the pandemic, the global tablet market started to shrink in 2021, continuing its decline in 2022 and 2023. But 2024 sales were up a healthy 9.2 percent from the previous year, and there are plenty of early signs suggesting 2025 will be a year of progress as well.
That being said, nothing is certain until it's certain, especially with US tariffs deemed a "risk that could dent demand, particularly for high-end devices." Speaking of the US, it's interesting (and a little sad) to point out that North America was the only major region where tablet shipments didn't actually increase last year compared to 2023.
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It's definitely nice to see the market return to growth after three lousy years, but that 2020 number remains untouchable.
All in all, Canalys estimates that 147.6 million units were sold around the world in 2024, which is a pretty big number (especially compared to the previous year's 135.3 mil total), but still slightly below 2022's tally, not to mention 2020's industry all-time record.
A lot of what will happen in 2025 hinges on the willingness and ambition of Chinese brands like Honor, Huawei, and Xiaomi to continue expanding their presence in their "home market and beyond", as well as various education projects in countries like Japan, and of course, Apple's changes and innovations for the top-selling iPad Pro, iPad Air, and "regular" iPad lines. In short, there are a lot of variables at play that could help the industry grow at a solid pace... or not so much.
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Adrian, a mobile technology enthusiast since the Nokia 3310 era, has been a dynamic presence in the tech journalism field, contributing to Android Authority, Digital Trends, and Pocketnow before joining PhoneArena in 2018. His expertise spans across various platforms, with a particular fondness for the diversity of the Android ecosystem. Despite the challenges of balancing full-time parenthood with his work, Adrian's passion for tech trends, running, and movies keeps him energized. His commitment to mid-range smartphones has led to an eclectic collection of devices, saved from personal bankruptcy by his preference for 'adequate' over 'overpriced'.
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