Apple seen selling up to 6 million 'iPad minis' this holiday

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  • Reply 41 of 103
    boeyc15boeyc15 Posts: 986member


    Count me in the camp if its 8" I dont get it. 


    IF its 6.9(7") down to about 5", made/marketed mainly as a consumption/game device(IPod Touch world, not a mini pad... eer yah), that makes a bit more sense to me.


    But thats just me, proof is in the pudding.


     


    Off topic-


     


    Im more curious what the new iphone will look like. Im not thrilled with the 'suppossed' leaked version, but Im sure we will all luv it when its released.... what ever it is.


     


    IMO only - this 4/4S design is a classic and should be kept going as long as possible, I know LTE and other goodies cannot be fit into it(today) but to me the design is timeless.


    That said... IMO a version that is 4.5" (retina be damned.. Sacrilige!) should also be released. Appears to me(and Im no expert) that the market says larger phones sizes are doing well; Apple could be leaving money on the table.  

  • Reply 42 of 103
    andysolandysol Posts: 2,506member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by TheOtherGeoff View Post


     


    I see Gamers., especially if it's a iPad 3 chipset and an RD display.



    Exactly my point- Gamers are the main people who buy iPod Touches as it is currently- if you give it a larger size than the current iPhone at a fair price, then those gamers will easily purchase that, replacing the current iPod Touch market- but it will also open up the door to a completely different market as well.


     


    Even a gamer who has an iPhone isn't going to buy a Touch, he'll just use his iPhone.  But a guy like me with an iPhone will also buy the 7 inch.  Just another feather in their cap.  And don't kid yourself- $499 is still a lot for several people to swallow, $249 doesn't seem like a ton and people would be more willing to swing that who don't have an iPad as it is.  And while we can look at the iPad 2 at $399 as a great value- some people just want "new", not last years model... even if it is the better value.


     


    I think it'd be a success.  But I don't work for Apple and I haven't created a product that has become a phenomenon, so what do I know?  I'll leave it up to them.

  • Reply 43 of 103
    andysolandysol Posts: 2,506member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by JeffDM View Post





    The estimates for the Nexus 7, Kindle Fire and Nook Tablet all suggest slim margins at best, even if you assume economies of scale. Less expensive tablets on the market cut a lot of corners. Apple can do better by virtue of even greater economies of scale and better supply chain management, but I doubt they're going to charge less than $250, $300 being a more realistic expectation.


    Jeff- I agree with you- I think it'll be $249 or $299 as well.  But they could still be profitable at $199- particularly with the screen and storage being the price swinger.  If its $299- I would expect retina an 16gb. But at $199 with non-retina and 8gb I would think could still be very profitable.  I'd buy either, and I think both would sell fantastically.  But knowing Apple- $299 and a top notch product with the latest technology seems more like them (and would be my preference).  $249 would even be better (duh!) image


     


    Time will tell.... or not.

  • Reply 44 of 103
    I'm holding out for the iPad Shuffle.
  • Reply 45 of 103
    bmason1270bmason1270 Posts: 258member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Filmantopia View Post



    I'm holding out for the iPad Shuffle.


    I'm holding out for a hero

  • Reply 46 of 103
    wigginwiggin Posts: 2,265member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by AppleInsider View Post

     


    Gene Munster with Piper Jaffray believes that Apple's rumored smaller iPad would be priced at $299 with 16 gigabytes of storage, given the company's $199 8-gigabyte iPod touch, and its $399 16-gigabyte iPad 2.




    I think the biggest problem with this analysis is the assumption that the iPad 2 will still be around once this iPad mini (or whatever it's called) is released. I just don't see Apple having an iPad 2, iPad, and iPad mini. Other than screen size, I would expect the iPad mini to at least match or exceed the specs of the iPad 2, potentially having a larger but less powerful iPad than the mini would be problematic for marketing. Apple likes to keep things simple. I still see the continued production of the iPad 2 as a stopgap until the mini is ready.


     


    That said, I suspect the following:


    1) The iPad touch will get a spec bump and maintain it's current price range. Apple may bump up the capacity and then finally kill off the iPod classic, leaving only the shuffle, nano and Touch in the iPod lineup. (Personally, the latest nano is a joke, so maybe they'll kill that off too?)


    2) The iPad 2 will be discontinued, which will "free up" the $399 price point for a higher end iPad mini (ie, higher capacity).


    3) If there is a $299 iPad, it will be 8 GB, not 16 GB as the above says. Otherwise I think it would steal away too much sales from the low-end full-size iPad.


    4) This new mid-size device will be an iPad, not an iPod. I think in Apple's eyes iPod is a dying brand. All the marketing is behind the iPad brand now.


    5) The screen will be the same resolution as the iPad 2 (easier for the developers), but at the smaller size it will be higher pixel density and so Apple will call it a Retina Display. (Further evidence that it is purely a marketing term, not a technical definition. :-)  )

  • Reply 47 of 103
    gazoobeegazoobee Posts: 3,754member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Mac_128 View Post





    Really? So what's with all the forced obsolescence on products that are still covered by Apple Care? Margin not large enough to support past the warranty period? Or products that still function perfectly as the day they were purchased, but Apple chooses to leave them behind? Mountain Lion is going to leave behind a huge number of Macs, some of which are barely 3 years old. That's not strategizing to increase its profits?


     


    You seem like a died-in-the-wool conservative so there probably isn't much point in arguing with you, but the flaw in your reasoning is that you are arguing results as if they were causes without any proof that this is in fact the case.  


     


    I would argue that there are product-related reasons that lead them to make decisions that may have the effect of making people feel as if they were "forced" to upgrade and buy new products.  Your characterisation of this situation as being Apple forcing you to upgrade as a profit maximising strategy is an unproven assumption on your part.  There is no evidence at all that Apple engages in this kind of planned obsolescence even though it's fairly standard practice in the electronics industry.  In fact, Apple products tend to last much longer than the average counterpart from another manufacturer and often last far beyond their expected or designed lifetime.     


     


    It seems to me that you just personally don't like change, are pissed at being "forced" (as you see it) to upgrade all the time, and are assuming (based on no evidence) that the reason behind this is Apple's mad drive for profit.  


     


    The trouble is that merely saying it doesn't make it so.  

  • Reply 48 of 103
    jimbo123jimbo123 Posts: 153member
    My 2 year old adores my iPad and iPhone and uses them to watch cartoons on You tube and browse pictures!

    He knows how to switch it on and use it. Told the wife the best thing we can buy this year is another iPad for his Christmas present. The iPad mini would be perfect!!
  • Reply 49 of 103

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Andysol View Post





    They make an 8gb iPod touch for $199. Why not- 2 full years later, be able to make a $199 7"? Particularly if they use old 3GS non-retinas (which the touch is). I think it'll be retina and $249-$299 if they release, but $199 is easily profitable.


     


    And you figure that how? The Touch? That's a screen with less than 1/4 the area, smaller battery, smaller case. Even Google concedes they won't make any money on the Nexus 7" (their business is advertising), and we know Amazon loses money with every Fire they sell, on the theory that they will get it back with book sales. But Amazon never had the gross margins Apple consistently creates.


     


    $199 even sounds cheap. That's not how Apple rolls, or has so far. If they do $199, you are looking at a very different company. I'm not even crazy about the format, frankly. It's too big to pocket, yet smallish for usability. We'll see. Key factor here, will the Nexus 7" actually sell? If not, why even bother with this size? Better to reduce the iPad 2 to $349 or something like that. And do an 11"+ iPad. That I'd really like to see.

  • Reply 50 of 103
    sr2012sr2012 Posts: 896member
    I gotta say, Retina MacBook Pro OS X didn't do it for me. 7" iPad mini? May not do it for me either. Doesn't have the touch of "Steve" about it. Well, just me. After many trips to the Apple Store I might finally settle on what I am typing this on... my old MBP 13" 2010 hooked up to 27" LED Cinema Display. Retina on iPad and iPhone is great. But Retina on OS X... maybe it's just ~my~ retina.
  • Reply 51 of 103
    sr2012sr2012 Posts: 896member
    bmason1270 wrote: »
    I'm holding out for a hero

    He's gotta be strong, and gotta be... Dammit now it's stuck it my head.
  • Reply 52 of 103
    sr2012sr2012 Posts: 896member
    boeyc15 wrote: »
    Im more curious what the new iphone will look like. Im not thrilled with the 'suppossed' leaked version, but Im sure we will all luv it when its released.... what ever it is.

    IMO only - this 4/4S design is a classic and should be kept going as long as possible, I know LTE and other goodies cannot be fit into it(today) but to me the design is timeless.
    That said... IMO a version that is 4.5" (retina be damned.. Sacrilige!) should also be released. Appears to me(and Im no expert) that the market says larger phones sizes are doing well; Apple could be leaving money on the table.  

    iPhone 5 will be iPhone 4S form factor (best phone form factor ever) but only as thick as the stainless steel band.
  • Reply 53 of 103
    applezillaapplezilla Posts: 941member


    I bet 9 million, minimum.

  • Reply 54 of 103
    island hermitisland hermit Posts: 6,217member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by jimbo123 View Post



    My 2 year old adores my iPad and iPhone and uses them to watch cartoons on You tube and browse pictures!

    He knows how to switch it on and use it. Told the wife the best thing we can buy this year is another iPad for his Christmas present. The iPad mini would be perfect!!


     


    I'm waiting for the lectures about how you shouldn't be buying a 2 year old anything that is so expensive...


     


    (personally, I think that if you are able to do it then that's cool...)

  • Reply 55 of 103
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member
    sr2012 wrote: »
    iPhone… …will be… …only as thick as the stainless steel band.

    I sure hope not.
  • Reply 56 of 103
    solipsismxsolipsismx Posts: 19,566member
    With a $200 or $300 Apple tablet 6 million units seems extremely low.
  • Reply 57 of 103
    venerablevenerable Posts: 108member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by SolipsismX View Post



    With a $200 or $300 Apple tablet 6 million units seems extremely low.


     






    Really?  We're now debating how many imaginary devices will be sold?  You have no idea if it exists at all and if it does you have no idea what the feature set or pricing level is but you're willing to speculate that 6 million units is "extremely low"?

  • Reply 58 of 103

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Gazoobee View Post


    You don't understand Apple at all.  



     


    You don't understand the difference between a feel-good PR story and the reality of a huge international megacorporation owned primarily by institutional investors on Wall Street.


     


    Apple's management has one goal:  Make money for Wall Street.  If they did anything else, management would be fired by the BOD, and if not, the BOD would be replaced by the owners of the company.

  • Reply 59 of 103
    solipsismxsolipsismx Posts: 19,566member
    venerable wrote: »
    Really?  We're now debating how many imaginary devices will be sold?  You have no idea if it exists at all and if it does you have no idea what the feature set or pricing level is but you're willing to speculate that 6 million units is "extremely low"?

    That's the position you want to take? That's it's impossible to have an opinion about a product based on price point despite overwhelming evidence regarding lower price points and comparative product lines? You're so sure that one can't make any educated guess about potential sales based on current and historical data that you'd never say that "it's impossible for Apple to sell 1 trillion in one day" or that "Apple would surely sell at least one unit"?
  • Reply 60 of 103

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Carmissimo View Post


     


    So if Apple is going to release a product, the thought process it goes through is, does the proposed product produce the optimal user experience.


     



     


     


    If the answer to that question were a resounding YES, but the product would  not produce significant profits, would Apple sell it?

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