Apple loses number one tablet spot to Huawei in China

Apple has been unseated as the number one tablet vendor in China after it was overtaken by Huawei in Q1 of 2020.

As reported by South China Morning Post:

China's tablet shipments plunged 30 per cent in the first quarter of 2020 compared to the same period last year due to the coronavirus pandemic, although the pain was not shared evenly, according to a report from research firm IDC. Shenzhen-based Huawei saw its tablet shipments grow 4.3 per cent year on year in the quarter ended March 31 to 1.5 million units – the only major tablet maker in the market to achieve positive growth in the period, IDC said in the report on Monday. During the quarter Huawei unseated Apple as the top tablet brand with a 40.2 per cent share of China's market compared to 35.1 per cent for the US company, which lost its lead after a 42.5 per cent year on year drop in unit sales of iPads in the period.

China's tablet market as a whole saw shipments plunge by 30% year on year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, despite online education and remote working driving demand for tablets. The IDC report notes that only Huawei was able to take advantage of the surge in demand, with other vendors missing the opportunity "due to the lack of plant capacity". The report further notes that demand will likely ease up as people return to schools and offices, but that going forward remote communication and online learning "will become more accepted in the future", boosting tablet sales prospects overall.