iPad users are older and wealthier than other tablet users

Owners of Apple iPads are older and have more money than the other tablet owners, says a recent study.

According to a research done by NPD, a leading market research company, more than 40 percent of iPad owners have a household income of $100 thousand or more compared to 26 percent of non-iPad owners.

With more and more tablets entering the market, the ownership of the device is growing rapidly. Even those who couldn’t earlier afford to buy a tablet, can now opt for one of the low-cost ranges. The study found that the new tablet owners make less money and are younger than the early adopters, with buyers at the end of 2011 being 50 percent more likely to have an income under $45 thousand, and 33 percent more likely to be under 34 years of age.

“As the demographic of the tablet owner continues to change the tablet market is beginning to take on a new role. We are seeing some of the tasks traditionally performed on devices, such as PCs, now being performed on the tablet. In fact, all five of the top activities shifted towards the tablet between early and late 2011,”said Stephen Baker, vice president of industry analysis at NPD.

However, the flourishing tablet market is not going to wipe out the market of other devices.  In the study, only 10 percent of tablet owners stated that they don’t need a PC notebook that they were once considering. The same trend is  reflected among non-tablet owners, 26 percent of whom say they are likely to buy a notebook in the next year, while just 18 percent say they will purchase a tablet.

“Even as consumers increasingly use tablets for tasks that were once exclusively done on their PC, they continue to plan new PC purchases. Usage is still evolving and most people, being inherently conservative in their device outlook, continue to hedge their bets on their device preference by planning to maintain an array of products to afford them maximum flexibility,” Baker adds.