While Apple's iPad continues to account for a large proportion of the tablet market, Google's Android platform is increasingly decreasing the former's market share.
Various models of the iPad gave Apple a 55 percent market share of tablet shipments during the third quarter. According to data stemming from ABI Research, that figure represents a 14 percent decline from the second quarter, as well as being its lowest level since the iPad's inception in 2010.
The firm said predominant reasons of the lost market share was due to Samsung, Amazon and Asus, who are a few of the technology firms who have adopted Google's mobile operating system Android, subsequently leading to accounting for 44 percent of tablets shipped. ABI Research expects the platform's market share to experience a continuous increase.
"As the OS of choice for the majority of device OEMs [original equipment manufacturers], we expect the Android ecosystem to continue growing in numbers -- new manufacturers, better device choices for reaching more markets, and more developers finding value from apps and content," ABI Research's Jeff Orr said in a statement.
The iPad Mini, released during the third quarter, is not expected to help Apple obtain market share from Google, ABI predicted.
"With the introduction of a smaller, lower-cost iPad Mini, Apple has acknowledged Android's beachhead of 7-inch-class tablets, though at the same time, it has failed to deliver a knock-out punch through innovation, pricing, and availability during the most critical selling period of the year," Orr explained.
As for Android's market share on smartphones, it's an entirely different outlook when compared to its fellow ecosystem. Google's platform accounted for for 72.4 percent of all smartphones sold during the third quarter, while iOS followed in a distant second place with a 13.9 percent share.
