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IDC says that the rest of the shipments went to RIM's PlayBook, which has only launched in Australia at the end of Q2, and New Zealand in early August.
IDC market analyst for Australia and New Zealand, Yee-Kuan Lau, said that the ANZ market expansion was a combined effort of early adopters refreshing devices purchased last year and new users who were interested in a media tablet as a complementary device, 'with some waiting for more non-Apple variety.'
'That said, there is still strong demand for Apple's iPad 2 since its launch at the end of March,' Lau said.
'The supply-side push from the new Android players in the market, particularly amongst the traditional PC hardware vendors, has caused a large rollout of stock into national retailers to strengthen their brand presence. However, at this stage, most vendors were testing the initial market response by introducing WiFi-only models.'
According to Lau, IDC expect the strong brand presence, the user experience and the halo effect to help maintain Apple's dominance in the market despite the multiple launches of Android-based media tablets.
'The overwhelming response to HP's TouchPad fire sales in A/NZ after the vendor decided to cease support for the product is evidence of price points being a key purchasing driver among end users, especially those looking for a secondary computing device, Lau added, but said IDC expects, however, the WebOS share to shrink to zero by Q4 2011.
Lau also says that Amazon Kindle Fire, announced on 28 September, is another good example that positions Amazon to be a leading digital media content seller that emphasises on the application ecosystem as its key differentiator. 'Its direct impact on the A/NZ media tablet market won't be known for some time as it is currently available in the US only. But, it has redefined end user expectations about what a media tablet can do and can cost, with the Fire being priced at US$199.'
IDC forecasts that Android-based media tablets are projected to reach at least 300,000 units by the end of 2011, but with Apple expected to continue to be the dominant player with more than 70% market share, and with approximately 1.3 million units of media tablets shipped into the ANZ channel by the end of this year.
