Flurry: Kindle Fire closes in on Galaxy Tab as top Android tablet
There’s a new sheriff in town according to Flurry, an analytics company tracking tens of thousands of Android applications. After crunching the numbers on Android tablet usage the firm found that the Amazon Kindle Fire has quickly closed the gap with the Samsung Galaxy Tab. In November, the Galaxy Tab (no specific model is named) accounted for 63 percent of the Android tablet market in terms of application sessions tracked by Flurry. The fledgling Kindle Fire only accounted for 3 percent during its first month on the market. Fast forward to the new year and the Kindle Fire has exploded in popularity, joining the Galaxy Tab at the top of the heap with both devices holding a 36 percent share.
Given Flurry’s method of collecting data, the percentages presented do not necessarily represent a true picture of actual market share. In this case, the Kindle Fire’s close ties to Amazon’s online content have led to a greater ratio of paid downloads and perhaps greater engagement with the Android-based tablet. There is also the possibility that Flurry’s tracking software appears in a higher proportion of apps in Amazon’s applications store as compared to the Android Market. Still, the numbers offer a generalized view of the current tablet landscape and the results are clear: the Kindle Fire has been a wild success.
Flurry attributes the Kindle Fire’s success to its low retail price, with Amazon expecting to reap most of their profits from the sale of digital goods via their online storefront. So far the model appears to be working, but devices like the Galaxy Tab still hold an important place in the tablet world for those looking for a powerful device with greater functionality
[via Flurry]