Indian tablet shipments fall 24% in Jan-March

New Delhi: The Covid-hit Indian tablet market saw 24 per cent (quarter-on-quarter) decline in the March quarter owing to supply chain challenges in China and muted domestic demand owing to lockdown, a new report said on Wednesday.

In Q2 2020, with the lockdown in place and stunted economic conditions, tablet supply and consumer demand will be under pressure and there may be 5-10 per cent decline in the June quarter. Despite this, Lenovo with a massive 47 per cent share continued to hold the first place and grow in Q1 2020, driven by opportunities in the healthcare and education sector.

Lenovo M series captured the overall tablet market. Its M10 (HD and FHD) series contributed up to 20 per cent of Lenovo's market share, according to CMR's 'Tablet PC Market Report Review for 1Q CY2020'. "The Covid-19 pandemic impacted the tablet market in India. Despite the gloomy market conditions, Lenovo continued to impress with its winning streak, on the back of the successful M series," said Menka Kumari, analyst with Industry Intelligence Group (IIG), CMR.

Samsung saw its market share decline 12 per cent (QoQ). Samsung has not launched any new tablets this year and needs to launch new models with new good features to regain market share. iBall regained the third position with 11 per cent market share. However, its overall sale declined 26 per cent.

Shipments of 6-7 inch display tablets constituted 28 per cent of the overall shipments in the India market. On the other hand, Tablets with 10-inch and above display contributed 45 per cent of the shipments.

"Over the short- to mid-term, some tablet vendors will stand to benefit from the increased productivity demands in the new normal, including home learning and work from home requirements," said Kumari.