Yes it will die. As the Android Smartphone made the iPhone irrelevant; Android has a greater share of the market. When the dozens of Android tablets are released this year the iPad will soon be irrelevant too. Before .... I get the iPhone basher thing, the numbers are real and I will likely use my iPad for awhile. I use the iPad for reading eBooks using Kobo. If want to browse the full web I can use my Samsung Captivate.
Not sure there is proof of what you are saying other than growing market share Android currently enjoys. Apple's numbers suggest that the iPhone is anything but irrelevant and in my view, what drives sales of these kinds of devices is not technical superiority, but the appearance of such.
Apple will likely never be irrelevant; their history proves they are quite capable of amazing the world with cool products. We had the Walkman and Apple took control and made billions reinventing portable music players. I still have my Walkman and a few other players like my Sony Mini Disk.
Those that gather on these forums seem to think that what is cool for us is cool for the planet; like the ability to JB/Root our devices. OR they bemoan Apple or Google for this and that and it matters very little to the average Joe. Few compared to the whole give a rats butt about it. Price and the appearance of cool often drive sales.
Do not sell Apple short. They seem to hit home runs with every new iThingy they release. When the iPad arrived, it was singularly unique and it caught fire, as did the iPhone. Then Android arrived to compete and the little robot seems to be gaining market share. No proof that will last.
God only knows what is next for Apple. Perhaps they will introduce an iPad that is so revolutionary and amazing, nothing else will matter, not even Android.
I am not sure what percentage of the population that can afford a tablet PC owns either brand. Anybody really know some accurate figures? If Apple introduces a new iThingy that manages to persuade those that either do not like tablets or likes them but has not bought either brand yet, who knows where they will go.
I gave up guessing what the next six months will bring. Android might grow more and become the leader, or Apple pulls something amazing out of it's hat and continues to lead.
Bob