Windows may dominate tablets thanks to affordable devices

The iPad is, well…it’s the iPad, but Android has a dominant chunk of tablet market share. The primary reason is that Android owns the market for cheap, virtually disposable tablets at the low end. But, what if you could get a tablet of decent quality and performance, that can also run Windows, and all of your Windows software for $150 or less?

That is where things are headed, and that is why Microsoft may soon be a major player in the tablet market.

I know what you’re going to say: “What? That’s crazy talk!”, or perhaps “You’re such a Windows fanboy”, or maybe “How much did Microsoft pay you to say that?”

All excellent points (not really), but I spelled out some reasons it might just happen in this blog post:

There are a number of smaller Windows tablets hitting the shelves now from Microsoft OEM partners and more on the horizon. At face value it seems like a late attempt by the Windows ecosystem to get in on the mobile device game. The reality, though, is that Microsoft can still capture a respectable—possibly dominant—stake of the tablet market.

I can hear the uproar already, but let’s look at why that might not be so crazy. Here are five reasons a small Windows tablet makes sense, and why you might find yourself owning one very soon.

1. Functionality

Apple’s iPads and the myriad Android tablet options out there are plenty capable, but they’re not Windows. The Windows operating system still owns more than 90 percent of the desktop OS market, which means that the vast majority of iPad and Android tablet owners are faced with trying to find native apps that do what they want and figuring out how to keep data synced between the platforms. A small Windows tablet is—beneath its tiny tablet exterior—a fully-functional Windows PC, which means that the features and functions will be familiar, and users won’t have to learn two separate platforms.

Click here to read the full post at PCWorld: 5 reasons a small Windows tablet might be in your future.

What do you think? If you were in the market for an affordable tablet, would you choose Android, or would you rather have a Windows PC in your hand?