As Black Friday and the holiday season approaches, Apple appears to be the consumer electronics brand to beat. A recent Nielsen survey (http://www.nielsen.com) shows kids’ holiday gaming and electronics appetites are whet by a number of top-selling Apple devices — with the iPad leading the pack.

Consistent with U.S. kids’ 2010 wish lists, the iPad is the most desired consumer electronic among kids ages 6-12 for holiday 2011. In fact, the iPad increases its stronghold, with nearly half (44%) of kids expressing interest in the product, up from 31% in 2010. Two other popular Apple devices — the iPod touch (30%) and iPhone (27%) — round out kids’ top three, with computers and other tablet brands each appealing to a quarter of younger consumers.

Among consumers ages 13 and older, appeal for the iPad (24%) has also broadened relative to last year (18%), and exceeds that of computers (18%), 2010’s top item. Further, it appears the iPad has successfully paved the way for other tablet offerings, as a notable 17% of adults/teens also express interest in non-Apple tablets.