New report states that tablet screen sizes determine how they’re used
Tablets come in all sorts of different sizes and aspect ratios. Every one of them is useful, but according to a new report, different screen sizes are used for different tasks.
Well-known consumer market researching firm NPD released the results of its study about different sized tablets. The study was led by the firm's senior analyst Stephanie Ethier. She found that people who own tablets with screens measuring smaller than 7-inches were more likely to use their tablets for basic entertainment purposes, like watching short videos and listening to their music collection.
Meanwhile, owners of tablets with 7- to 11-inch screens use their devices for everything else. The study found that they surf the web, send/receive email, and download apps. And apparently, these people even use their tablets for a bit of content creation, as well.
But perhaps the most important finding of this study is from the following quote. (Editor's note: italics are added for emphasis by me.)
"As the tablet market continues to heat up, manufacturers are striving to differentiate next-generation products to compete with the iPad. Screen size has emerged not only as a key differentiator, but also the leading indicator of different tablet usages."
In other words, we'll see a wide variety of tablet sizes throughout the next few years. Competition and choice is great, and I can't wait to start covering some unique and pocketable devices in the near future.
[PCMag]
