Is This Apple Inc. (AAPL)’s Biggest Tablet Opportunity Yet?

The argument would be that Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) would provide a more secure and reliable tablet, even if costs were slightly higher. However, if educational areas are looking to cut more costs or offer more wide-scale customization to a large tablet roll-out, that could lead them to Android offerings. Also worth noting is that the country’s educational head has met with Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) , a company that offers more compatibility with the large PC-install base in the country, and one looking for tablet traction.

To put the size of 18 million tablets in perspective, it’d constitute about 30% of all Android tablet sales in 2012. With Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) looking for more traction in the tablet space, winning educational tablet contracts, especially in price-sensitive markets, could become a priority for Google in coming years.

Tablets as a growth field
The bottom line is that tablets are reaching a critical growth phase as smartphone growth slows in developed markets. Across 2012, researcher IDC increased its forward projection of 2016 tablet sales by more than 40% from where it expected them to be at the start of the year. The future of tablets and how much growth remains is still very much up in the air. Stories like Turkey’s future show the potential for tablets to be an equal to smartphones one day. The big question for investors is whether the market goes very low-end, or whether Apple can keep up its dominant market share.

The article Is This Apple’s Biggest Tablet Opportunity Yet? originally appeared on Fool.com and is written by Eric Bleeker, CFA.

Eric Bleeker, CFA, has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Apple, Google, and Intel. The Motley Fool owns shares of Apple, Google, Intel, and Microsoft.

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