IHS iSuppli analysts claim other tablets are no match for the mighty iPad. After completing a comparative teardown, pitting both the iPad 1 and iPad 2 against the Motorola Xoom, the BlackBerry PlayBook, the Samsung Galaxy Tab, the Asus Eee Pad, and the HP TouchPad, iSuppli has found that in terms of design, the iPad is leading the tablet race.
"Since Apple controls both the operating system and the hardware design of the iPad, it is able to attain design efficiencies that other tablet manufacturers cannot," Wayne Lam, iSuppli's senior analyst of competitive analysis said. "These efficiencies become obvious in areas like the memory and the battery, where Apple maintains advantages in cost, space savings, and performance compared with every competitor in the business."
iSuppli notes that many other top tablets use a third party for their software. For example, the Xoom and the Galaxy Tab both run on Google's Android OS. By contrast, Apple builds its software in-house, allowing it to maintain total control over the complete platform.
"Apple takes a vertically integrated approach to its products, from the operating system to the user interface, to the hardware design, down to the selection of the individual parts used in the device," Lam added.
It seems consumers have already decided they like the iPad, according Apple's third quarter results. In its last earnings call, the company revealed that it sold 9.3 million iPads in the quarter that ended June 25, three times the total from the previous year. The sales of competitor tablets are miniscule in comparison.
With the iPad, Apple brought the first tablet to the market, and iSuppli said the company set the standard for these devices, in terms of both price and size.