Is Apple ’s dominance in tablets coming to an end?

The iPad has shaped and dominated the global market for tablet computers since the original model came out in 2010. But the market landscape may be starting to change, as consumers now have a lot more options with tablets from Samsung Electronics Co Amazon.com Inc. and many other brands.

In the third quarter through September, Apple’s share of the tablet market dropped sharply to 50.4% from 65.4% in the previous quarter, according to research firm IDC.

Major vendors of tablets powered by Google Inc.’s Android operating system gained market shares in the same quarter. Samsung’s share increased to 18.4% – the largest-ever market share for a vendor other than Apple – from 9.4% in the second quarter. Amazon, the vendor of Kindle Fire tablets, followed with a 9% share, while Taiwan’s Asustek Computer Inc., known for its Asus brand for PCs, came fourth with a 8.6% share.

Apple’s market share declined in part because some consumers were holding off their iPad purchases during the third quarter expecting Apple to release a new, smaller tablet – the iPad Mini, which went on sale last week. Although Apple only announced its plans to launch the iPad Mini last month, the media had been talking about it for a while, including a Wall Street Journal article in July.