The Snugg Weighs in on The Most Wished For Tablets This Christmas

The tablet computing industry has had a rough year and it doesn’t look set to get any easier. This Christmas, there is talk of tablet wars and rumours as to which companies are likely to succeed and which are likely to wind up reconsidering their position in the market.
 
What is certain however, is that for most people, a new tablet is the most wished for gift this Christmas.
 
The Apple iPad tops the list as the number one most wished for tablet and with the recent release of the Kindle Fire, it looks to be a close second. This is given weight by their initial pre-order volumes of over 4 million, whereas other tablet manufacturers are currently struggling to attain consistent six figure sales volumes.
 
Mr Richard Mercer, Managing Director of the tablet accessory provider: The Snugg, states:
 
“Many tablet manufacturers have missed the point. A lot of people who are looking for an iPad-like experience, with around £400 to spend, are going to buy an iPad. With so many Android and Windows devices out there trying to claw their own share of this market, it’s little wonder that they’re having difficulty. Amazon’s Kindle Fire and the recently announced Novo 7 by Chinese tablet makers Ainovo, are brilliant tablets that fill a genuine gap. Both priced at under £250, they make the market more accessible to users who have yet to try out a tablet, or perhaps don’t have £400 to spend. Integration with services that provide on the go content is a crucial USP, one that cemented Apple’s reputation and one that saw the Kindle Fire’s announcement become a media frenzy. For the casual user, it’s more about the software, than the hardware under the bonnet”.
 
With the iPad 2 taking first place and the Kindle Fire taking second, some may wonder what other alternatives they can expect to choose from.
 
Asus have just launched their Eee Pad Transformer just in time for Christmas which can be converted into a notebook style computer with its detachable keyboard, priced at around £400 with the keyboard and around £350 without; so if you’re looking for novelty or a mobile office, then it may suit you. It also boasts HD video playback and enough hardware to allow for seamless multi-tasking.
 
Hot on the Eee Pad’s heels is the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1. With Samsung still involved in continuing legal disputes with Apple, the resulting PR seems only to have stoked demand as more users have taken an interest in the device. It is actually thinner and lighter than the iPad 2 and it beats the iPad 2 on hardware, boasting double the RAM, stereo sound, greater resolution and more.  
 
“Christmas is an unpredictable time for us tablet accessory providers. The festive shopping season is obviously a great time for new tablets to be released, but that doesn’t give us much time to assess the dimensions of new tablets and then design, manufacture and distribute a suitable case for them. At the same time, you don’t want to rush into catering for these new releases just in case the tablet experiences market difficulties, as RIM has with their Playbook. We know that the iPad 2 and Kindle Fire are guaranteed to do well this Christmas and so we’ve focused on preparing the supply of our iPad 2 Case and Kindle Fire Case for the inevitable sales rush. That said, the HTC Flyer is still a strong contender and the Blackberry Playbook has experienced excessive price reductions in recent weeks which should increase sales among the price conscious; as such we’ve ensured a stable supply of these cases” Says Mr Mercer.
 
Lower down the tablet wish list at number five is the Motorola Xoom 2; which was originally designed to meet the iPad 2 head on, with a price tag to match of around £380 according to the gadget blog ‘Crave’. On raw power, the Xoom 2 is in fact more advanced than the iPad 2 but it fails to offer anything particularly unique, unlike the Kindle Fire and its integration with Amazon’s media services.
 
“After these, the Sony tablet S, HTC Flyer, Acer Iconia, Playbook and HP’s Slate 2 complete the list in rank order. Sony’s tablets, the Sony Tablet S and Sony Tablet P are incredibly innovative and I imagine that their popularity will grow further yet, with the promise of a more vivid display courtesy of their light refraction control technology and their Playstation certification; although the Clamshell Sony Tablet P will make for awkward media consumption across its foldable twin screens. HP’s Slate 2 looks to be a hit with business users and the HTC Flyer continues to remain popular in the absence of an updated model, due to its smaller size and pressure sensitive stylus features. We can’t cater for all models just yet, but once the Christmas rush has subsided, we can see which models remain popular and we can then look to cater for them” adds Mr Mercer.

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About TheSnugg:
TheSnugg has been offering its customers the opportunity to safeguard their technological assets with stylish, quality cases since their formation in 2010. Based in Bolton, the company operates internationally across Europe, Australia, New Zealand, China and the US, becoming a best-seller in five territories.
 
For further information contact:
Email: help@TheSnugg.com
Website: www.TheSnugg.com
 

Contact Information

Richard Mercer

Managing Director

The Snugg

(44) 01204 544 967

help@thesnugg.com