Microsoft entered the top 5 tablet vendor list for the first time. According to IDC, Microsoft sold about 900,000 Surface devices which includes Surface RT and Surface Pro. They also reported that many of them were Surface Pro units. Microsoft held 1.8% of the total market share and for a comparison, company like Amazon which is selling low cost tablet devices just had 3.7% of the market share.
Microsoft has said that it is actively widening its regional distribution of both Surface RT and Surface Pro products. Beyond the Surface products, Windows 8 and Windows RT tablets continued to struggle to gain traction in the market. Total combined Windows 8 and Windows RT shipments across all vendors reached 1.8 million units.
IDC commented on the recent rumors that Microsoft is adding support for 7-8 inch Windows RT/8 devices as the following,
“Recent rumors have circulated about the possibility of smaller screen Windows RT and Windows 8 tablets hitting the market,” said Ryan Reith, Program Manager for IDC’s Mobility Tracker program. “However, the notion that this will be the saving grace is flawed. Clearly the market is moving toward smart 7-8 inch devices, but Microsoft’s larger challenges center around consumer messaging and lower cost competition. If these challenges are addressed, along with the desired screen size variations, then we could see Microsoft make even further headway in 2013 and beyond.”
Source: IDC