Survey: iPad Leads Corporate Tablet Adoption

Apple is dominating a surge in corporate tablet adoption, according to a survey conducted by research firm ChangeWave, with 22 percent of respondents planning to purchase tablets for their employees in the second quarter of 2012. The vast majority of those purchases are planned to be iPads, meaning that Apple is set for a bigger footprint in the enterprise space.

The survey, which sampled 1,604 business IT buyers, shows that among the greater than one-in-five companies who plan to acquire tablets next quarter, Apple’s iPad is the clear choice with 84 percent of respondents claiming that they’ll choose the Cupertino-based firm’s product over everything else. While Apple has historically held a strong lead in this category dating back to late 2010, this quarter’s 84 percent rating represents a seven point gain over last quarter and is the highest ever recorded by ChangeWave.

Corporate iPad Purchases

Chart by The Mac Observer from ChangeWave data.

Apple’s gain appears to have taken an equal toll on its competitors, with every other tablet manufacturer seeing reduced purchasing interest this quarter. Samsung, Apple’s closet competitor, fell two points from 10 percent to 8 percent. 

Corporate Tablet Purchases

Chart by The Mac Observer from ChangeWave data.

The iPad’s popularity also seems to have had an effect on corporate decisions on wireless carriers for the device. AT&T and Verizon, the only two iPad carriers in the U.S., each hold about 30 percent of the intended purchase market, while Sprint comes in at a distant 4 percent.

The “new iPad” launches this Friday but perhaps more significantly for corporate customers is the iPad 2’s remainder on the market at a reduced price of $399. While still more expensive than many Android-based tablets, the cheaper iPad 2 will likely be very attractive to corporate purchasers who desire Apple’s build quality and ecosystem but have no business need for the new features of the 2012 iPad.