Emerging analyst firm Telsyte said in a release that a strong year of tablet sales mean there are now almost 7 million in Australia at the end of June 2013.

The company estimates annual device sales revenue will exceed $2 billion in 2013, and said that tablets were now well and truly mainstream, everyday devices.

The research found that 2013 first half sales consisted of 52% Apple iPads, 43% Android-based tablets and the remaining 5% being Microsoft Windows based tablets.

Given current trends, Telsyte anticipates Android-based tablets will achieve more unit sales annually than Apple’s iPads by 2015 in Australia. This follows statistics that show Android has overtaken iOS smartphones worldwide, nabbing around 80% market share.

“The market has become increasingly competitive, however, the iPad mini helped Apple retain market leadership in the first half of 2013,” Telsyte Managing Director Foad Fadaghi says.

Samsung is the clear leader in the Android devices, with almost 40% of all Android-based tablets sold in Australia made by the Korean tech giant.

Meanwhile Windows-based tablets continue to grow in adoption taking 5% market share in the first 6 months of 2013. Telsyte estimates by 2017 around 20% of media tablets sold in that year will be running Windows.

“Despite being slow to start, Windows is expected to grow its market share, driven by business users and increased OEM support,” Telsyte Senior Analyst Alvin Lee said.

The arrival of new wearable computers in the second half of 2013 is not expected to impact the media tablet market; Telsyte said that the devices, like Samsung's upcoming Galaxy Gear smartwatch, would complement rather than replace devices like tablets. 

Of the media tablets subscribed to Australian mobile networks in the first half of 2013 some 20% were connected via high-speed LTE (4G)