An October 2010 study conducted by Nielsen entitled The Increasingly Connected Consumer: Connected Devices has found that tablets, while still regarded as a relatively nascent technology, are favored among early adopter consumers.

The study, the purpose of which was to gain a better idea of the consumers purchasing Apple iPads, Amazon Kindles and other similar gadgets and how they are using them, has found that smartphones still hold the largest penetration of the connected devices market, with a majority share of 25%.

In terms of sharing, 46% of tablet users allow others to use their devices, compared to only about one-third of smartphone and eReader users who do the same (34% smartphone users, 33% eReader users). This is partly because tablets are viewed as less personal devices than smartphones, eReaders and netbooks. Among these tablet devices, Apple iPad users are generally younger, with 63% of users found to be under the age of 35.

News and music are among the content most viewed on the Apple iPad and, not surprisingly, top paid app downloads for the iPad are games, with books and music apps coming in close behind.