“Citi Group Financial’s internal research group… surveyed almost 2000 people and found some interesting results globally for tablets,” Ben Bajarin reports for Tech.pinions.
“In the US only 8% had purchased a tablet with the intent of replacing a laptop. The bulk of the usage of tablets the research turned up was for more lightweight consumption,” Bajarin reports. “Things like web browsing, email, social networking and multimedia were the top usage models. Their China research however turned up very different results.”
Bajarin reports, “It appears that in China there are significantly more people looking at buying tablets and using them as a laptop replacement… 31% of Chinese respondents said that their interest in purchasing a tablet was to replace their notebook. Another 26% expressed interest in a tablet to replace their desktop and another 30% interested in replacing their Netbook with a tablet… iPad could be huge in China is firstly because China is a huge market and second because they appear to be interested in a tablet as a PC replacement.”
Read more in the full article here.
Boom… go appl
Apple is gonna rip it up in China…this will be there tipping point. If they can manage the demand in China then they will own the world.
My understanding is that “typing” in languages such as Chinese is far easier on an iPad then in a device with a physical keyboard like a BlackBerry or PC. I’ve heard that the Chinese LOVE the input interface on iOS.
Cloud computing will make this a viable proposition. Thin client nirvana. Meanwhile I am still praying for a hybrid iOS / OSX product born of iPad & Macbook Air.
Computers have not made as much penetration in China as in developed countries, due to cost, size and lack of strong network infrastructure.
Not all that long ago, you had community telephones for a whole building or neighborhood. As China has developed, rather than build out copper infrastructure as you have here in developed countries, China, like many developing countries just skipped landline and went straight to wireless. Since there’s less cable and less landline telephone structure, the result is fewer home PCs. Quite a few people go to internet cafes to email or play games.
Smartphones and tablets better fill people’s needs in places like China. Communications and computer in one, in a smaller package.
As for Apple specifically, it’s an aspirational brand in China. As the notion of iPads in education takes off, every middle class Chinese parent will want to get an iPad, so as their child isn’t disadvantaged. I hate to get overenthusiastic, but I really think Apple is just scraping the surface in China.