Global media tablets shipments reached 10.1 million units in the fourth quarter of 2010, more than double the 4.5 million units shipped in the third quarter, according to a new report by IDC.
Apple maintained its top position though its share decreased from 93% in third quarter of 2010 to 73% in fourth quarter of 2010.
The research revealed that Samsung’s Galaxy Tab was the primary competitor in the holiday season, beating other players to market and capturing more than 17% share.
The eReader market also picked up significantly in the fourth quarter with strong sales of Amazon’s Kindle, which was refreshed in August and priced more aggressively, and significant gains from competitors such as Pandigital, Barnes & Noble, Hanvon, and Sony, contributed to market growth.
In 4Q10, the eReader market more than doubled volume from the previous quarter, with more than 6 million units shipped for the quarter, bringing the full-year total to 12.8 million units shipped.
eReader shipments were up more than 325% from 2009 with approximately 3 million units shipped.
IDC said that the strong growth reflects a more competitive offering as well as widening interest in the category, including a boost from media tablet press and much lower pricing.
Geographically, the US, Western Europe and Asia/Pacific (excluding Japan) regions accounted for 89% of all media tablet shipments in 4Q10.
Although the United States remained the largest country market, Western Europe and Asia/Pacific (excluding Japan) grew almost twice as fast from 3Q10 to 4Q10 and Western Europe saw a slightly larger jump in shipments in 4Q10.
In 4Q10, retailers were the channel with the highest share of shipments, followed by direct and telco sales.
A new channel for media tablets, the telco operators, accounted for nearly 14% of all shipments of media tablets in 4Q10 following just over 1% share in the third quarter.
