Credit: Dreamstime
Hardware resellers in the Philippines might want to think about upping their tablet orders with the country’s tablet market almost doubling in the second quarter of 2021 compared to the corresponding period last year.
This is according to analyst firm IDC, which claims that the market segment for tablets grew by 97.9 per cent year-on-year and 15.7 per cent quarter-on-quarter during the three months to 30 June 2021, driven largely by the domestic education sector.
“Tablet shipments continued to be driven by the education sector due to large tenders from several local government units (LGUs) to provide tablets for public school students in preparation for the school year,” said Angela Jenny Medez, client devices market analyst at IDC Philippines. “Face-to-face schooling remained suspended, compelling some schools to shift to online learning.
“The surge in shipments during the second half of 2020 as shown in the chart is due to the huge tenders from the bigger LGUs when the 2020-2021 school year began in September of last year,” she added.
Credit: IDC According to IDC, tablets remain the device of choice among LGUs, under which all local government tiers reside, due to such hardware being a cheaper alternative to full-blown laptops and desktops while still being able to run the full gamut of educational platforms, apps and productivity tools.
Additionally, some LGUs with access to an internet connection have switched from self-learning modules or a printed learning modality to an online or blended learning approach, being more cost-effective in comparison to the printout of modules, further driving tablet usage.
According to Medez, although such trends in the local education sector have driven the tablet market to new heights, this year's numbers remain lower than the rampant growth seen in the final two quarters of last year.
“The tablet market's performance for the rest of the year will still be driven mainly by the education segment due to procurements from other LGUs, as face-to-face classes have remained suspended until further notice due to the resurgence of COVID-19 cases,” Medez said.
“However, we do not expect the same momentum compared to the previous year, as some local government units prioritise the roll-out of vaccinations. New procurements will be from other cities outside of Metro Manila,” she added.
Of the major tablet vendors, Samsung took the top spot in terms of market share in the second quarter, claiming 45.4 per cent, representing a whopping 378.1 per cent year-on-year growth.
Lenovo came in second with 16.4 per cent market share and 184 per cent year-on-year growth during the quarter. Following Lenovo were Cherry Mobile, Huawei and Haier, respectively.
Credit: IDC 
