by SONG Jianan

China's tablet market rose 9% in the third quarter of 2025 to 8.8 million units, data from market research firm Omdia showed, with Chinese vendors widening their lead as Apple's share continued to slip.

Apple's iPad shipments fell 14% to 2 million units, cutting its market share to 23% from 29% a year earlier. The company's recent financial results also signaled softer momentum, with iPad revenue down 8% in fiscal Q3 and roughly flat in Q4 due to a high comparison base from last year's iPad Air and iPad Pro refresh cycles.

Chinese brands continued to consolidate their position. Huawei remained the top seller with 2.7 million units shipped, up 21% year on year and representing a 31% share. Xiaomi and Lenovo each shipped about 900,000 units, with Lenovo posting the strongest growth at 71%, lifting its share to 10%. Honor followed with 600,000 units. Domestic manufacturers accounted for 77% of total shipments, up five percentage points from a year earlier.

Analysts said Apple is facing fiercer competition in the key 2,000–3,000 yuan segment, where Chinese models increasingly offer higher refresh rates, longer battery life and more features. The iPad's 60 Hz non-laminated screen and slower product-update cadence stand out more as rivals add capabilities such as Huawei's NearLink connectivity and Lenovo's AI-based education tools.

Lenovo's gains were driven by a strategy targeting the education market while expanding into lower-priced consumer models. Its learning tablets come with parental-control systems and curriculum-aligned content, while its Xiaoxin line — starting at around 550 yuan — offers 2.5K displays and long battery life. The company has also benefited from enterprise procurement tied to its commercial PC business.

Omdia senior analyst XU Ying said aggressive promotions and direct subsidies kept demand firm, while major vendors broadened product portfolios to cover everyday use, gaming and productivity. Manufacturers are also stepping up investment in unified AI back-end systems and cross-device integration, which xu said will become key differentiators in future models.

Omdia expects China's tablet market to grow 12% in 2025 to 35 million units, supported by rapid new-model rollouts and competitive pricing. Shipments are forecast to fall 9% in 2026 as the market cools following two years of rapid expansion.