In the past year Apple's tablet OEM competitors experienced a growth of 79%, while Apple experienced only 13% growth in shipments largely due to increasing challenges as the tablet market reaches saturation in mature markets, according to ABI Research.

　　"Historically, Apple has dominated the market, but the current shift in the ecosystem has raised question marks over its control and future," said ABI Research analyst Stephanie Van Vactor. Although its competitors using Google's Android OS have surpassed Apple's unit volume, iPad revenues for 2013 still exceeded the rest of the market by 11%.

　　Apple and the tablet market have reached a fork in the road; however, opportunities to explore new avenues do exist. Apple's creative vision has been the core of its business model and iPad implementation. Apple's "less is more" strategy gives it the innate ability to show success in the early stages but begins to display signs of vulnerability as the market matures, the firm said.

　　With the right partnerships, especially in the business and education sectors, iPad could continue to expand its market reach. "Apple has the power to market to different regions where tablet adoption is low, and building relationships with business vertical sectors can help expand its breadth," added ABI Research senior practice director Jeff Orr. "Although Apple's ASP for its iPad remains considerably higher than other tablet OEMs, it still has the advantage of offering its closed iOS ecosystem services via the iTunes app store."