android news Android Tablets Apple iPads

By PATRICK SEITZ, INVESTOR'S BUSINESS DAILY

Tablets using Google's Android operating system have caught up to Apple's (AAPL) iPad in market penetration, a study out Monday says.

A U.S. survey by Frank N. Magid Associates for the Online Publishers Association found that 52% of tablet owners have Apple iPads, compared with 51% for Android tablets. The numbers don't add up to 100% because some tablet users have more than one type of tablet.

A year ago, 72% of tablet owners had Apple iPads vs. 32% for Android devices, the research firm says.

By device, Apple's iPad 2 is the most common tablet in use, claiming 31% of tablet owners. Amazon.com's (AMZN) Kindle Fire, which uses a version of Android, was second with 28%, followed by Apple's original iPad with 22% and Samsung's Galaxy Tab, another Android device, with 13%, the survey says.

The number of tablet users has jumped from 28.3 million, or 12% of the population, last year to 74.1 million, or 31% of the population, in 2012, the survey shows. The study projects tablet penetration to hit 47% this year, or 117.4 million users.

For the study, Frank N. Magid Associates conducted an online survey of 2,540 U.S. Internet users between the ages of 8 and 64. The data were collected March 19-26.

Tablet satisfaction is higher for Apple iPads, but Android is close behind. Among Apple iPad owners, 95% are satisfied with their device, compared with 90% for Android device owners.

Microsoft is expected to enter the tablet field with an announcement later Monday, as we've reported.