For a long time, Apple's iPad dominated the overcrowded market for tablets... well, not until Microsoft's Surface line emerged and eventually nabbed the top spot in terms of online sales, according to a report.

A report carried out by 1010data Ecom Insights Panel divulged that Microsoft is the top-selling tablet maker based on online sales in October 2015.

There is no doubt Microsoft grabbed a considerable chunk of the tablet market share in October. It was at that period, specifically on Oct. 6, in which Microsoft unwrapped its Surface Book and Surface Pro 4. These devices generated a significant boost in its sales as compared to the figures it had in the preceding months.

While Apple was listed on top of the list for the first nine months of 2015 in terms of online sales, the Redmond-based tech titan managed to beat Apple in the tenth month. Microsoft got 45 percent share of the total online sales while the Cupertino-based company recorded 17 percent.

The report likewise exposed that while Microsoft might sell smaller quantity of tablets over the web as compared with Apple, the average selling price of Microsoft is way higher than that of Apple's over the last 12 months. Microsoft sold out the Surface lineup of tablets, which include Surface Pro 3, Surface Pro 4 and Surface Book, at the average price tag of $844. The average price tag of Apple iPad, in the meantime, is only at $392.

The 1010data Ecom Insights panel is composed of millions of online purchasers in the United States who permit 1010data to keep an eye on their online behavior, which include their e-commerce activity, for use in market research.

To make certain that the panel is representative of the Internet Browsing Population in the country; 1010data makes use of sophisticated machine learning, proprietary statistical modeling and data science methods.

Meanwhile, it appears that iPads saw a decline in the market share. By the first quarter of 2013, it notched 40 percent market share as compared with 58 percent it recorded in the first quarter of 2012. In the subsequent quarters, the figure even dropped to 30 percent.

Among the reasons of this decline include the emergence of inexpensive Android slates, which are being marketed all over the globe. With Microsoft's 2-in-1 tablets entering the game, that figure has apparently even jumped down.

ⓒ 2018 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.