Africa News: Business use of iPads is increasing

BOSTON — When African iPad users think of their glossy tablets, Angry Birds and Fruit Ninja may be the last thing on their minds.

The latest "iPad for Business Survey 2012" from IDG connect reveals that at 13 percent, the proportion of African respondents who say they use their iPad for entertainment is the lowest in the world.

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African users tend to use their iPad less for entertainment and personal communication than for business purposes.

In fact, the surveys shows that 47 percent of the iPads used in Africa was purchased for the worker by the employee. This is compared to the global average of 24 percent. 

That means African professionals are almost twice as likely as the global average to be supplied with an iPad by their employer, according to ITWeb.

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“The research shows that the iPad has emerged as true work device," IDG Kathryn Cave said. "It has heralded seismic shifts in the way its users access and digest information. And it has shown that the African continent has its own unique business landscape."

Of those African professionals who own iPads, 83 percent said they always use their iPad at work, compared to the global average of 51 percent.

The survey revealed other notable statistics: 97 percent of professionals use the iPad for reading and 66 percent say their iPad has partially or completely replaced their laptop.

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Apple’s iPad officially launched in South Africa last January. The iPad 2 with Wi-Fi hit stores in South Africa on April 29.

The "iPad for Business Survey 2012" which you can download here is based on interviews with IT and business professionals across every continent, reported ITWeb.

IDG Connect has not specified the exact size and demographics of its research sample.