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Apple expected to sell up to 1.5M iPad minis over launch weekend

The iPad mini is forecast to get off to a strong but modest start this weekend with sales of up to 1.5 million units, but over time Apple's 7.9-inch tablet is expected to gain popularity.

Gene Munster of Piper Jaffray believes that Apple will sell between a million and 1.5 million iPad minis over the launch weekend. On the high end, that would be half the 3 million third-generation iPads Apple sold at launch this March.

One reason for a smaller launch is the fact that there will not be any 4G LTE models available at launch. Those versions of the iPad mini are scheduled to launch later this month.

Another reason cited by Munster is the "newness of the form factor for consumers." He currently believes smaller-sized tablets account for about 20 to 25 percent of overall market units, but he sees the share of smaller tablets growing in the future.

"Consumers will gradually realize the benefits of the smaller form factor, which will drive adoption, although it may not take form in lines for tomorrow's launch," Munster wrote.

In particular, Munster believes consumers will appreciate the ability to use the iPad mini with one hand, and the enhanced portability the smaller form factor offers. Until now, he said, the market for smaller tablets has been limited because existing devices like the Kindle Fire and Nexus 7 lack the ecosystem and brand that Apple is bringing to market with the iPad mini.

Last month, before the iPad mini was made official, Munster said he believes every five iPad mini sales would be equal to cannibalization of one full-size iPad. His prediction of a 20 percent cannibalization rate suggests Apple could greatly expand its addressable market by offering two different screen sizes.



44 Comments

apple ][ 13 Years · 9225 comments

I'm no analyst (thank god), but I believe that Apple can sell even more than that, as long as they have sufficient stock to meet the demand. The iPad Mini is launching in 34 countries and the pre-orders did sell out fairly quickly.

 

I can pull random numbers out of my ass just as easily as any analyst can, and I'm going to say that Apple sells 2.3 Million iPad Minis over the launch weekend.

quadra 610 16 Years · 6685 comments

BUT ASUS IS SELLING A MILLION NEXUS 7s EACH MO . . .

 

oh wait . . 

sflocal 16 Years · 6138 comments

People called the iPad a "toy" when it first came out.  What moniker are they going to slap on this one that will make them look foolish in the end?

drblank 18 Years · 3384 comments

But is this counting the units they've already pre-sold or is this ADDITIONAL units? Well, I'm getting my iPad 4 tomorrow, so I have a new toy to play with. But at least this toy doesn't have an OS GUI that directly from an X-Box gaming console. I still can't figure out how Steve Ballmer can make a comment that Windows 8 Surface tablets are for serious computing when the GUI is directly from a Gaming Console. To me, that's just a kid's toy trying to act grown up. Oh well, I'm sure Ballmer has one leg out of Microsoft, someone just has to push out completely. Can't wait.

anantksundaram 18 Years · 20391 comments

[quote name="Quadra 610" url="/t/153967/apple-expected-to-sell-up-to-1-5m-ipad-minis-over-launch-weekend#post_2224939"]BUT ASUS IS SELLING A MILLION NEXUS 7s EACH MO . . . oh wait . .  [/quote] You mean 'smoothly' [I]approaching[/I] selling a million..... Oh wait......