Apple Inc. (AAPL)’s Tie To A Mind-Blowing Tablet Study

Despite the fact that a growing number of tablet users are relying on cellular capabilities, this is not something that everybody is taking advantage of. Could a shift in this direction mean big things for Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) and its iPad lineup moving forward.

According to a recent study by NPD Connected Intelligence research, “cellular connections for tablets grew 48 percent in the first quarter of 2013 compared to the first quarter of 2012, but still are only utilized on 12 percent of the tablets in the U.S.”

Take a closer look at those numbers. Despite the fact that cellular connections for tablets, such as the Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) iPad, increased by 48 percent during the first quarter of 2013, only 12 percent of the devices are actually utilizing the feature.

Eddie Hold, vice president of Connected Intelligence, believes this is a problem because most consumers have not found that one application that gives them a reason to add a cellular connection.

He pointed out another drawback:

“Another set-back is that many tablets purchased today do not include a cellular modem, which further limits the directly-addressable market for mobile operators. Instead, these operators need to focus on tethering and mobile hotspot solutions in order to grow the market more rapidly.”

While an increase in use could definitely work in the favor of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), as well as other tablet manufacturers, it is important to note that the real winners will be the wireless carriers.

According to the Connected Intelligence Mobile Broadband Market Share Report, “the connected tablet market is currently dominated by and AT&T and Verizon Wireless.”

This is no surprise, as these two companies are the cream of the crop when it comes to tablet and smartphone connectivity.

Hold added the following:

“Tablet cellular consumption is very similar to that of smartphones and typically exhibits similar traits. The difference in consumption on the Wi-Fi side comes from much higher video consumption on tablets (4GB per tablet per month), which accounts for 40 percent of all tablet data traffic, compared to less than 10 percent of data consumption on smartphones.”

Right now, it appears that the lack of adoption of tablet cellular use is related directly to a lack of knowledge. In other words, consumers don’t know what this can do for them.

If nothing else, it is nice to see cellular connections for tablets on the rise. This could attract more people to purchase a tablet, such as an Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) iPad, in the future.