surfaceproMicrosoft is officially back on the radar in the worldwide tablet market, with its Surface Pro and Surface RT tablets combining for 900,000 units shipped in the first quarter, according to a report today by the IDC research firm.

That gives the Microsoft Surface 1.8 percent market share, in fifth place, according to IDC’s estimates. Amazon came in at No. 4 for the quarter, with 1.8 million Kindle Fire units shipped, for 3.7 percent market share.

Here’s what IDC says about Surface and Windows 8 tablets in general …

Microsoft, which is a focal point for many in the tablet space, entered the top five for the first time as shipments of its Surface RT and Surface Pro tablets combined for a total of nearly 900,000 units. Many of those units were Surface Pro, which the company started shipping to the U.S. and Canada in February. Microsoft has said that it is actively widening its regional distribution of both Surface RT and Surface Pro products. Beyond the Surface products, Windows 8 and Windows RT tablets continued to struggle to gain traction in the market. Total combined Windows 8 and Windows RT shipments across all vendors reached 1.8 million units.

Apple led the market with 19.5 million units shipped, followed by Samsung and ASUS. Here is IDC’s chart.

tablets

PreviouslyHow hardware is changing Microsoft: Surface helps Windows revenue, at a cost

Like what you're reading? Subscribe to GeekWire's free newsletters to catch every headline

Job Listings on GeekWork

Find more jobs on GeekWork. Employers, post a job here.