There's been a few somewhat recent comments that Apple's iPad sales growth rate may be slowing a bit. We'll of course have a better idea within just days when Apple releases it's next results. If true tho, wouldn't you agree that Apple would be remiss in ignoring a market for a smaller/lighter/more portable/lower-priced tablet?
Apple can't ignore sales trends, certainly, but there are a couple of points to consider. One is that Apple already makes a smaller/lighter/more portable/lower-priced tablet. I'm obviously referring to the Touch/iPhone. Apple can't ignore that it has such a tablet with a starting price of about $200 which is ballpark to what the proposed 7-inch tablet would be priced at. What the competition in smaller tablets impacts on more than the 10-inch tablet is the Touch. Myself, I believe the Touch should be bigger and could be without compromising portability.
The other point to consider is that Apple has never been known for chasing markets downstream. In the laptop field, while everybody else was engaged in a race for the bottom that led to the ill-fated netbook, Apple has never made a cheap laptop. There was no Apple netbook.
The question for Apple isn't if a lot of people would initially buy a 7-inch iPad. They know that initially many would. The question is, once bought, would that product serve consumers well. It's assumed that a 7-inch iPad would be just like the 10-inch iPad only lighter, cheaper, easier to hold. If that were the case, Apple would have made the iPad with a 7-inch screen in the first place.
Apple has been a success by producing products that make people who buy them glad they did. If you bring to market a product that consumers think they want but only because they haven't thought this through, you betray a trust that Apple has been careful to cultivate for quite a few years. Apple tinkered with all sorts of tablet sizes before settling on the 10-inch iPad and found the other configurations lacking.
I can't possibly know what the current Apple management has planned. There have been quite a few reports insisting a smaller tablet is coming so maybe it is. Yet I have to believe that the one principle Apple's success has been built on still holds in the post-Jobs era.
The argument seems to be that Apple would bring out the 7-inch model because others are selling a few in that configuration and Apple sales could suffer. I would argue that if Apple still believes that size would only result in an inferior tablet, Apple with stay away just as it refused to be sucked into the netbook misstep.
because of lower price and hence more units and there is no current leader except 'weak' Kindle Fire (US only). The only 'real' competition is Nexus 7 but Google has no worldwide sales mechanism. Apple is not as strong internationally as, say Microsoft, worldwide but they are much stronger worldwide than Google in selling hardware.
I want Apple to go down the Asus PadFone route. I want my 27" Apple Display to contain a MBP that contains a MBA that contains a 10" iPad that contains an 8" iPad that contains an iPhone that contains an iPod Mini that contains an iPod Shuffle. Anything less and Apple is just trying to screw us over.
You forgot the crucial ingredient: must be available in Zune brown!
'iPad mini' may give Apple larger market opportunity than current iPad? I do not agree with this. There are too many apple users. It is difficult for Apple to keep so high speed of growth.
'iPad mini' may give Apple larger market opportunity than current iPad? I do not agree with this. There are too many apple users. It is difficult for Apple to keep so high speed of growth.
It's not about the 8" iPad v. 10" iPad because a second device size will get added to the total number of iPads sold. You make it cheaper and you probably will sell more units even if your total profits aren't as high.
But you miss the point about the difficultly factor. It is increasingly more difficult which is a primary reason why Apple will want to offer more variety so they can maintain that rapid growth once the current size starts to plateau of other vendors catchup or exceed in certain ways.
Comments
Apple can't ignore sales trends, certainly, but there are a couple of points to consider. One is that Apple already makes a smaller/lighter/more portable/lower-priced tablet. I'm obviously referring to the Touch/iPhone. Apple can't ignore that it has such a tablet with a starting price of about $200 which is ballpark to what the proposed 7-inch tablet would be priced at. What the competition in smaller tablets impacts on more than the 10-inch tablet is the Touch. Myself, I believe the Touch should be bigger and could be without compromising portability.
The other point to consider is that Apple has never been known for chasing markets downstream. In the laptop field, while everybody else was engaged in a race for the bottom that led to the ill-fated netbook, Apple has never made a cheap laptop. There was no Apple netbook.
The question for Apple isn't if a lot of people would initially buy a 7-inch iPad. They know that initially many would. The question is, once bought, would that product serve consumers well. It's assumed that a 7-inch iPad would be just like the 10-inch iPad only lighter, cheaper, easier to hold. If that were the case, Apple would have made the iPad with a 7-inch screen in the first place.
Apple has been a success by producing products that make people who buy them glad they did. If you bring to market a product that consumers think they want but only because they haven't thought this through, you betray a trust that Apple has been careful to cultivate for quite a few years. Apple tinkered with all sorts of tablet sizes before settling on the 10-inch iPad and found the other configurations lacking.
I can't possibly know what the current Apple management has planned. There have been quite a few reports insisting a smaller tablet is coming so maybe it is. Yet I have to believe that the one principle Apple's success has been built on still holds in the post-Jobs era.
The argument seems to be that Apple would bring out the 7-inch model because others are selling a few in that configuration and Apple sales could suffer. I would argue that if Apple still believes that size would only result in an inferior tablet, Apple with stay away just as it refused to be sucked into the netbook misstep.
Right or wrong I'll be glad when Apple finally announces this thing in a few months so we can end this debate and move on to something new.
So on the other hand you get to keep saying that every few months for the rest of eternity.
because of lower price and hence more units and there is no current leader except 'weak' Kindle Fire (US only). The only 'real' competition is Nexus 7 but Google has no worldwide sales mechanism. Apple is not as strong internationally as, say Microsoft, worldwide but they are much stronger worldwide than Google in selling hardware.
Quote:
Originally Posted by SolipsismX
I want Apple to go down the Asus PadFone route. I want my 27" Apple Display to contain a MBP that contains a MBA that contains a 10" iPad that contains an 8" iPad that contains an iPhone that contains an iPod Mini that contains an iPod Shuffle. Anything less and Apple is just trying to screw us over.
You forgot the crucial ingredient: must be available in Zune brown!
'iPad mini' may give Apple larger market opportunity than current iPad? I do not agree with this. There are too many apple users. It is difficult for Apple to keep so high speed of growth.
It's not about the 8" iPad v. 10" iPad because a second device size will get added to the total number of iPads sold. You make it cheaper and you probably will sell more units even if your total profits aren't as high.
But you miss the point about the difficultly factor. It is increasingly more difficult which is a primary reason why Apple will want to offer more variety so they can maintain that rapid growth once the current size starts to plateau of other vendors catchup or exceed in certain ways.
Quote:
Originally Posted by SolipsismX
What the hell just happened?
Oh, it was a spammer. Sorry for that. Seems you wasted some time… but at least people will see further truth now.