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Phablet sales as high as tablets and laptops combined

Market research firm IDC is reporting that according to its latest figures for Asia/Pacific – which excludes Japan – more ‘phablets’ were sold in the second quarter of the year than tablets and laptops combined. It’s astonishing news, and even though many analysts predicted this would be the year of the ‘phablet’ it appears to have caught manufacturers unawares. According to IDC, the vast majority of phablets sold still come from Samsung’s Galaxy Note range.

Other manufacturers are playing catch-up. LG’s recent Optimus Pro 2 is a great device, according to Dave, but it’s “low-cost local players” who have made the best inroads against Samsung, says IDC, on account of being able to offer customers big screens about half the price of a Note 2.

A year ago, Samsung commanded 90% of the total phablet market in the region, but of the 25.2 million phablets sold in Asia between April and June, it sold around 50%. By comparison, 12.6 million fuller sized tablets were sold and 12.7 million laptops. Sales doubled compared to the first quarter and were up more than six times the same period last year.

The word ‘phablet’, incidentally, is now defined by the Oxford English Dictionary (no less) as:

noun

trademark

  • a smartphone having a screen which is intermediate in size between that of a typical smartphone and a tablet computer:a 3.5 inch screen is inadequate in a market that is trending towards phablets

Origin:

early 21st century: blend of phone1 and tablet

IDC describes phablets as: “Smartphones with screen sizes of 5 to just under 7 inches”. Their popularity may yet be a blip, however, as hybrid laptop/tablets get better and yet more device categories emerge.

(Via The Guardian)

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