Report: Non-Apple Tablet Makers Faced With Excess Inventory
One of my designers here at work tried to go buy an iPad today during lunch. He first went to Best Buy and they were sold out. So he called Target, Radio Shack and even the Apple Store. All were currently out of stock. He ended up coming back to work and ordering it on apple.com. He will get it in about 2 weeks. We were surprised that he couldn't find one when the iPad came out on March 11th! It has been nearly 2 months and the demand it still very strong!
If you want to buy a tablet this year you might wait until Q3 or Q4. There could be some serious sales going on around the holidays. :popcorn:
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http://common8.ziffdavisinternet.com...=282993,00.jpg By Leslie Horn
http://common4.ziffdavisinternet.com...=299127,00.jpg
pcmag.com - This year has brought a number of tablets, with the launch of products like Motorola's Xoom, RIM's BlackBerry PlayBook, and of course, Apple's iPad 2. The iPad has clearly dominated the market, and by contrast, other tablet makers have experienced lackluster sales which could lead to another problem: excess inventory.
According to a DigiTimes report there is a "high risk" for non-Apple tablet makers because the amount of tablets available far exceeds the demand.
DigiTimes cites "market watchers" who say that in the second half of 2011, there will be more than 10 tablet makers in a market that has a demand for just 20 million units. To put it into perspective, Apple sold 4.69 million iPads in the first quarter of fiscal 2011, a decline from the 7.33 million iPads it sold in the previous quarter. Even so, Apple hasn't been able to keep up for the demand of the device, which is reportedly sold out in many locations around the world. Meanwhile, one analyst estimates that Motorola has sold just 120,000 Xooms at the very most.
After Apple divulged the decline in iPad sales last month, analysts adjusted their expectations for iPad sales. iSuppli slashed an earlier prediction of 43.7 million iPads to 39.7 million. Whether the decline in sales is due to part shortages caused by the Japan earthquake or overall decreased demand for tablets is unclear. But if it's a trend, it doesn't bode well for other tablet makers.
Apple's dominance with the iPad leaves a limited share of the space for other companies to squeeze in with their answers to the iPad. But because the space is limited, those companies are left with excess inventory, DigiTimes said.
In spite of a growing number of tablets hitting the market, DisplaySearch recently predicted that Apple will be the dominant tablet maker through 2012, at which point the competition will only begin to catch up. But it's likely some tablet makers will be weeded out of the race, considering DisplaySearch noted that 19 companies showed of tablets at the Consumer Electronics Show in January.
Source: http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2384908,00.asp
