Samsung Electronics and Lenovo, both of which have ambitious goals for tablet shipments for 2014, both released new tablets in May 2014. Pricing of the new tablet from Samsung is still far higher than those of its competitors and is expected to impact the Korea-based vendor's shipment performance.
Lenovo released its first 8-inch entry-level tablet and the device's price-performance ratio is also better than those of its tablets from the previous year.
Lenovo was the most aggressive vendor in terms of tablets with phone functions in 2013. In 2014, the top-4 Android tablet brand vendors, including Acer, all invested in the phone-tablet segment. Asustek is trying to expand in China with its entry-level Fonepad 7, while Acer is promoting its tablets with phone functions aggressively in emerging markets.
However, brand vendors are unlikely to achieve rapid growth in the segment, which is mostly being dominated by regional vendors.
As for Windows-based tablets, with Asustek's entry-level T100 successfully turning consumers' attention back to Windows-based detachable tablet devices, Acer has released its new Switch 10 with Acer Snap Hinge design. However, lacking a strong price-performance ratio, the Switch 10 may face pressure from successors of the T100 in the near future, Digitimes Research believes.