Tablet sales: Android gains at iPads\' expense

Sales of tablet computers running Google's Android software rose last quarter at the expense of Apple's iPad, after companies led by Samsung Electronics introduced new models, according to a researcher. Android tablets accounted for 27% of global sales during the three month period, jumping from 2.3% a year earlier, Strategy Analytics said in a statement on Friday. The iPad's share fell to 67% from 96%. Companies from Samsung to Acer are counting on Android, the most popular operating system for mobile phones, to help dent Apple's dominance in the surging tablet market. Competition between Android devices and the iPad may further intensify as Amazon.com joins in with a product at half the price of the Apple gadget, Strategy Analytics said. "Amazon's strategy of minimising its hardware price is set to ignite the entry-level tablet segment and attract more mass-market consumers," Neil Mawston, a London-based director for the research company, said. Samsung, whose Galaxy tablet computers have been blocked by Apple in Germany and Australia in patent disputes, was the biggest seller of Android tablets with about a 9% share of the overall market, Thomas Kang, a Seoul-based research director for Strategy Analytics, said. The South Korean company was followed by Asustek Computer, Acer and Motorola Mobility Holdings, according to Kang who said the breakdown figures were yet to be completed. Total tablet sales amounted to 16.7 million units in the third quarter, more than tripling from 4.4 million a year earlier, according to the Bostonbased researcher. Strategy Analytics said on September 29 Amazon will sell more than 15 million units of its latest Kindle Fire tablet by the end of 2013. The 7-inch Android device will go on sale Nov. 15 for as little as $199, compared with $499 for the cheapest iPad. Google, stepping up efforts to challenge Apple, this week unveiled the latest version of Android, named Ice Cream Sandwich, its first offering designed for both phones and tablets.