New research from Strategy Analytics indicates Apple continues to hold a majority of the tablet market as Android improves its standing on the strength of Amazon’s Kindle Fire. 

Based on its calculations of worldwide tablet shipments during the fourth quarter of 2011, Peter King, Director at Strategy Analytics, states:

“Global tablet shipments reached an all-time high of 26.8 million units in Q4 2011, surging 150 percent from 10.7 million in Q4 2010. Demand for tablets among consumer, business and education users remains strong. Apple shipped a robust 15.4 million iPads worldwide and maintained its strong market leadership with 58 percent share during the fourth quarter of 2011. Apple shrugged off the much-hyped threat from entry-level Android models this quarter.”

Despite strong growth in shipment share for Android, Apple’s share is down less than four percentage points since the firm’s estimates for the second quarter of last year. Android’s other gains appear to have come at the expense of Microsoft and Research in Motion, which registered at 4.6% and 3.3% respectively during the second quarter.

The reliability of Strategy Analytics’ numbers have been questioned in the past due to its counting of shipments rather than end sales to customers.

With many early Android tablets seeing little interest from consumers, the firm’s reports are seen as overstating Android’s impact by counting Android tablets still sitting on store shelves while Apple was selling nearly every iPad it could make.

Certainly shipments are a metric to keep an eye on, but sales are what matters and at this point Apple is the clear leader in that all-important category.

[via L.A. Times]