Half Of Britons ‘Now Own A Tablet’

Following a bumper Christmas for electronics manufacturers, accounting firm Deloitte has suggested that as many as half of the UK’s population now uses some kind of tablet device.

Boosted by online promotions at many major retailers, as well as the release of several high-profile cheap tablets, such as the Tesco Hudl and Argos MyTablet, Deloitte estimates that between 12 and 13 million tablets were sold in the UK in 2013. This is an increase of more than 50 percent on last year, and means that by the end of January, half of Britons will own or have access to a tablet, up from 36 percent last summer.

Smaller tablets becoming more popular

Paul Lee, Deloitte’s head of technology, media and telecoms research, who oversaw the report, says that sales of smaller tablets (those with screens smaller than 8.5 inches, such as the iPad Mini or Kindle Fire HD), will soon overtake those of their larger counterparts, which inevitably often cost more.

Despite only being widespread since 2012, the research suggests that by the end of March, there will be 165 million smaller tablets in use worldwide, compared to 160 million of their larger siblings. The growing prevalence of such devices as gifts for children may be a crucial factor in this increase, with many parents purchasing separate, hardier tablets for their offspring rather than having to share.

“Tablets have gained popularity with extraordinary speed, and manufacturers will have to work hard to stay on top of the evolution of the market,” Lee said. “There appear to be more users and use cases for tablets than many had imagined. Getting the balance of form, function and price right will likely be a moving target during 2014, especially at the lower end of the market.”

Deloitte’s full research report, with more complete and detailed findings, will be released later this month.

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