Ezine Articles

Apple‘s tablet market share has dropped to 50.4% in Q3 2012, down from 59.7% in the same period last year, IDC’s latest report reveals.

Samsung, on the other hand, has experienced huge growth, jumping from 6.5% to 18.4% in that same period. Amazon holds the third place with 9%, followed by Asus with 8.6% and Lenovo with 1.4%.

Hurricane Sandy didn’t stop Apple fans from coming out in droves in New York City to get their hands on the new iPad mini tablet, but the kickoff event was a bit less enthusiastic than previous product launches in recent history. It also started a bit later than scheduled.

Although an Apple spokesperson confirmed to Mashable on Thursday the launch would begin at 8 a.m. ET on Friday, doors didn’t open until 10 a.m. Once the line started moving, shoppers could get in and out relatively quickly.

Almost from the beginning, Apple (AAPL) has been rumored to have been looking at manufacturing a smaller iPad. While the company delivered in form factor, finish, materials, and quality, there has been one thing most industry watchers have wanted… a smaller price. Well, too bad. I have been wanting a smaller iPad for a long time, especially since the 3rd-generation iPad was thicker and heavier instead of thinner and lighter. It’s taken me a while to figure out Apple’s strategy here, but it’s actually quite simple.

It was only a week ago that Apple lost its appeal to a U.K. High Court, where it was seeking to overturn a previous ruling that resulted in the iPad and iPhone maker being forced to publish a notice on its U.K. website stating that rival Samsung did not copy its products.

The notice has now been taken down, after Apple was ordered to replace it following objections from Samsung to its content.

Apple's "apology", found in U.K. newspaper The Guardian.
(Credit: Tim Acheson)