In just the past "Black Friday," the day, iPad unexpectedly hot in the San Francisco Bay area, shop and store a number of retailers are almost sold out, one on "Black Five" sales situation, iPad and even future fate in the Tablet PC may not have imagined so tragic.
From a competitive point of view in terms of internal product, iPhone, iPad as Apple's two protege, competitive trends between each other is inevitable, once up to the strategic level of brand development, by this elimination He simply between two products long directly launch "cannibalism", or "Who killed who" thesis, apparently somewhat exaggerated, is untenable.
In rebuttal "iPhone kill the iPad" on this subject, the author's view is that, iPad Apple product line center position had not been marginalized, the dominance of the tablet market has never really been shaken before.
First you must understand that Apple has never been to conquer the world one end, it will not satisfy the market with a variety of products for all sub-groups, it is not like, like Nokia, N shall create types, attributes, each with differences in function of the phone, do may cover all people, for an annual production capacity yet it faces problems Apple, is not realistic nor necessary. Apple's product positioning is very clear, is to satisfy all the needs of heavy users of electronic products.
iPad from four years ago, the moment of birth, and the fate of doomed iPhone is different. So, in product design, iPad software and hardware configurations, nor had the iPhone can be compared, mainly in the following aspects:
Hardware advantages: Contrast listed the same two products, find more hardware than the iPhone iPad taken high, such as ipad 2 uses a dual-core A5 processor, powerful than the iPhone A4 processor 4 and more, in addition to large screen customization, and enhanced built-in graphics, big game program, are based on the iPad to take high-quality entertainment configuration, while the iPhone inside, the same functional hardware is greatly reduced.
Software Advantage: iphone software is basically where you can use the ipad, ipad software but not necessarily attached to the iphone, Apple iPad can play in order to allow the hardware advantage in the iPad App Store inside the planning area, while supporting the original iPhone, iPod Touch software area collectively known as the iPhone, iPad can support down iPhone version of the software, but the iPhone, iPod Touch can not use the iPad version of the software.
Needless to say, Apple's future development for the iPad developed a distinguished iPhone, functional use of specific routes. Apple believes that Internet users in the use iPad scenario, the probability of photography should be minimal. If the camera, phone, Flash, multi-tasking these functions can be in iPhone, iMAC and PC, who will hold the ipad handle complex business needs? Naturally, will not have a strong market demand for the iPad.
In fact, iPhone and iPad comparability is not high, even if the same is equipped with ios system, the main function of the application tends to be the same, but the intersection of the two product lines is not much. Ultimately iPad is an online multimedia entertainment devices, as long as the key features of the product to achieve the ultimate, to give those extra scenes in the flat, no practical function, but also in reducing the cost and time to market advantages above accounted for verification of the existence of market shortcomings, but also can be upgraded later to resolve. Relative to the market demand is simple, flexible and comfortable to deal also iPad, iPhone, but no such product advantages.
Cook's iPad strategy
According to IDC, worldwide PC shipments this year will continue to fall, tablet phone shipments will grow by 118 million units, while shipments of tablet PCs will only grow 16 million units. However, iPhone 6 Plus publisher let it all is full of variables, in the fourth quarter iPhone shipments of 56.4 million units, while "tablet phone" 6 Plus has reached 1510 units.
But objectively speaking, we can follow the 6 Plus sales of smart phones and tablet PCs in both categories were split in half, which means that about 15 million in sales, of which about 7.5 million consumers are actually iPad potential users. Apple sold in the fourth quarter of last year a total of 26 million units iPad, so even IDC iPad sales this year will be reduced by 300 million units, but overall sales plus 6 Plus 7.5 million units sold, Apple Tablet type of equipment is still is growing. So a single iPad sales decline trend may appear in this year, but that does not make much impact on the overall revenue for Apple.
iPad future market prospects are still uncertain, is clearly not limited decline in shipments of the product line can decide, not to mention the phenomenon of this decline is entirely controlled within Apple's product strategy, this as the world's highest capacity and sales tablet PC, can meet again early on the product line, which is the iPad effect after 2010, the key is that Apple will take depends on how the iPad strategy is to find a balance between smart phones and tablet PCs? Choose one or two up and down the knife on the iPhone?
