Neil Hughes
Apple's jumbo-sized iPad Pro is set to launch in one week, on next Friday, Nov. 13, according to retail chain Sam's Club, which has begun accepting preorders on its website.
Sam's Club sent out an email to customers on Friday advertising the launch of the iPad Pro next week, starting at a discounted price of $787 for members. AppleInsider readers Ken and "Kodiak Club" reached out with details from the promotional email.
The Nov. 13 launch also aligns with details heard by keyboard maker Pozible, which contacted AppleInsider on Friday claiming to have details from within China's reseller network. They were told that iPad Pro units will begin arriving next Wednesday, Nov. 11, but resellers have been instructed to not begin selling the units to customers until Friday.
Earlier rumors had suggested the iPad Pro and accompanying accessories would launch on Nov. 11. But Friday's leaks would suggest that customers will have to wait a few more days.
Apple typically introduces its new products on either a Tuesday or a Friday. In addition, next Wednesday is the Veterans Day holiday in the U.S.
The company had previously announced a broad "November" window for its 12.9-inch touchscreen tablet. Suggested retail prices start at $799 for the 32-gigabyte model, $949 for a 128-gigabyte version, and $1,079 for 128 gigabytes with LTE connectivity.
All models boast a beefed-up A9X processor and 4 gigabytes of RAM. The device's Retina display with 5.6 million pixels is large enough to run two full-size iPad Air apps side by side.
Official accessories include the Apple Pencil for $99, and the Smart Keyboard for $169.
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15 Comments
Why would a Pro model sell through a Sam's Club, at least on launch? This does not seem to be a product for most of that customer base.
Why would a Pro model sell through a Sam's Club, at least on launch? This does not seem to be a product for most of that customer base.
Sam's Club sells items 10 times the cost of the most expensive iPad Pro model.
Why would a Pro model sell through a Sam's Club, at least on launch? This does not seem to be a product for most of that customer base.
Sams Club is a Walmart store and Walmart sells Apple products like iPads and iPhones and iPods. So it is just one of the products that is new. You can buy a 128GB 6S+ through Walmart (but not necessarily in store) I think as well.
Plus Sam's Club seems to try to be going upscale as a Costco wannabe.
Why would a Pro model sell through a Sam's Club, at least on launch? This does not seem to be a product for most of that customer base.
Well, the article's not wrong, but what I find curious about it is that
Apple would have enough of them available at launch to bother with this sort of outlet...
I'd have thought their own online and physical stores would be sold out by dawn.
If Apple didn't have these in the retail channel for Black Friday then the analysts and naysayers would positively tear Apple a new one.