Sunday, October 3, 2010

Best Buy: iPad cutting into laptop sales

Has the iPad affected consumer demand for Netbooks and notebooks? According to comments by Best Buy's chief executive, Apple's popular tablet is chopping away at laptop sales.

Best Buy CEO Brian Dunn told The Wall Street Journal... that internal estimates showed the iPad had cannibalized sales from laptop PCs by as much as 50 percent.

Best Buy reported solid second-quarter earnings...thanks in part to strong iPad sales. But the company also said it lost market share for the quarter due to limited inventory for the iPad.
The retail chain started carrying Apple's tablet as the device went on sale in the U.S. in early April. But Best Buy quickly ran out of inventory since it stocked the iPad in only around half of its nationwide stores. The company announced this week that the tablet would be available on September 26 in all its retail outlets.

The comments by Dunn echo findings from other sources that notebook and Netbook demand is slowing because of the iPad.

A column in today's Fortune Magazine points to a new report from Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty saying that "tablet cannibalization," mostly by the iPad, is at least partially to blame for the downturn in notebook sales over the past eight or nine months. Huberty's latest report follows a similar one issued in May in which she forecast that tablets would prove to be a big threat to Netbooks.
Fortune quoted Huberty's conclusion that "we expect tablets to continue to pressure PCs as more vendors launch products (e.g., Dell Streak and Samsung Tab) and Apple expands its iPad distribution."
Other analysts have also been eyeing the impact on the laptop market from tablets. In early July, Barclays Capital issued a report saying that Wintel (Windows and Intel) laptops would take a hit because of the growth of the iPad and rival tablets. A June report from DisplaySearch found that the iPad was already grabbing market share from Netbooks and that momentum was shifting from Netbooks to tablets.

Demand for the iPad has prompted several analysts to up their sales forecasts for the device. In July, ABI Research said it expected Apple to ship around 11 million iPads by the end of the year, while iSuppli predicted that 12.9 million iPads would ship this year, a huge jump from its April forecast of 7.1 million units.

Of course, if the iPad is cannibalizing laptop sales, the news isn't exactly disappointing to Apple. Chief Operating Officer Tim Cook expressed his sentiment in July when the company announced third-quarter earnings.

"Our guts tell us that this market is very big," Cook said. "If it turns out that iPad cannibalizes PCs, that's fantastic for us because there is a lot of PCs to cannibalize."

89 comments:

killerkun said...

I can't believe people are actually buying so many iPads

Joshua said...

Personally It hasn't effected the sales much in New Zealand because there's demand for things that the iPad can't handle.

Admin said...

Want one, but no money yet for this :'(

Naj said...

every time i see an ipad, i wanna buy one.

Lizard said...

didn't know iPad would do that.

JillDine said...

i dont know why you would substitue this for a laptop...cant do alot of things on it.

Nie Mand said...

Doubt it, from my perspective the iPad is mainly bought by mac users. "Normal" notebook users would be very unsatisfied with the iPad, I guess.

anon1337 said...

I think the iPad needs more features before it can be a substitute for a laptop.

jeanjean said...

I have one, it's quite useful but it doesn't support flash!!! big drawback

Ashley Asthenia said...

I want an Ipaddddd so fucking bad. Shit's just too damn expensive!

Futomara said...

I want an iPad for my iApartment in the iCity on the planet iEarth.

Adrien said...

I can't imagine people going to the store in need of a laptop and end up buying something that isn't nearly as functional.

yuyiuyi said...

This was some really good reading. Thumbs up :)

Raging Demon said...

Why the hell would you want an iPad over a proper laptop?

SaviorSelf said...

how the HELL could an ipad replace a laptop. you can't do fucking anything with it. just a glorified iphone that doesn't make calls.

i mean, yeah, it's cool to have around for 3G web browsing and maybe using the map when you're in a new city, but you can't use a word processor or run useful software like Reason, ANY game, emulators.. etc etc. not to mention lack of Flash.

a tablet pc that could do all these things would be amazing, but the iPad itself, while flashy and cool, is a total gimmick.

good post, brotato chip.

DailyDose said...

In this post:

A bunch of people who don't know what "Cannibalize" means...

Tablets are cool if you want a computer you can't like.. run programs on or save files to. Or type. I guess.

Liv said...

I don't ever want an ipad, I'll stick with my laptop

Rezden said...

I think that the iPad caters to a more casual user and that seems to be where the U.S. is at currently with almost everything. I've never experienced an iPad before, so not sure how it compares to a laptop. I'm still about desktop computing anyway.

Whitewolf Starr said...

I am happy with my mcbook pro thanks

Anonymous said...

ipad is just bad in my opinion, i dont see any usefulness to having one

The Music Dude 23 said...

I want one too :(

Anonymous said...

I want an iPad too! I tried one out at Best Buy and it was awesome.

Acou said...

iPads are so useless! they can't even multitask, which is really important nowadays... sure it's good for browsing the web and games, but nothing more.

Michael Casspir said...

I'd love an iPad, but since I already use my Macbook Pro in such a way that it's completely mobile, I don't think I'd get that much use out of it. We'll see, though - I'm more interested in the development of a new iPhone.

Ultimate Banana said...

I still prefer a real laptop, don't like iPads at all

Pandor42 said...

I can't believe the iPad is cannibalizing laptop sales. First off, there are a lot more BestBuys than Apple stores meaning they'll visit just to get the iPad and maybe service plans, but people who want laptops or tablets will get them. I think this is just trying to hype up the iPad.

i'mME said...

I'd like the iPad for use on the go, plus using it as a second monitor for my laptop would rock.

Willow said...

As much as I like the iPad, the only reason it's cutting into laptop sales is because of price. Everyone knows yes, Apple makes a great product, but the prices are outrageous, another thing is, what about those that need to use flash websites or even need more power then what the iPad can give them.

John G said...

Even if I had the money I have to be honest with you, I don't think I'd buy one of these. It's pretty much a laptop. But more expensive!

Ruhmreich said...

iPad is not better, I think...

DailyTechnician said...

Shouldn't the IPad be classified as a laptop? sorta? kinda?

richie said...

No thanks, i actually need a computer that lets me DO stuff, and that doesn't need to go through Itunes all the time.

ARGH, ITUNES!

Alex said...

I read somewhere that Brian Dunn (CEO of Best Buy) retracted that statement.

Sona-Love said...

am i the only person left on the planet who is completely uninterested in this thing?
there's nothing an Ipad can do that something else you already own can't.

meh

Izzie said...

Apple is taking over the world. Look out, Walmart.

Eferhilda said...

There are more tablets out there that do the same if not more then the ipad. Its all about the portability and convenience that comes with having a tablet.

Aeacus.Warden said...

I'd want an iPad for a coaster for my coffee, that's about it. I'm not parting with my netbook or laptop anytime soon!

Hidden Blogger said...

I see tablets having a future, but nothing will truly replace a laptop as a portable computing experience in my eyes. iPad is neat, but it's just a toy (to me).

Tommi Clox said...

I really have no desire for an ipad. Two of my friends had to have them when they first came out, because they are apple fanboys. I like laptops just fine! Cool article.

Luna79 said...

I guess people who just want a cool looking computer for online browsing would prefer these, but there's no way an iPad can fully substitute a laptop.

ShredGuitar said...

Cool.

Luigibomb said...

Ipads, the biggest scam since Alienware.

Too bad Apple doesnt have such bad profit's such as Nvidia's 1.7%

Drackar said...

I want a pad. but I want one with more functionality than that pos.

kokojesta said...

meh..... mass hysteria, we're so duped

Anonymous said...

Did not know that.

Archivist X0042 said...

I dont believe that horse shit for a second.

max said...

well I love apple stuff but I will wait a bit more with iPad

Doraemon said...

I am still yet to meet anyone who owns an ipad.

Guess demand isn't so high in England.

Anonymous said...

interesting article, nice layout btw- thanks for visiting my blog!

OC-STEVEN said...

cant stand this... i have an iphone and thats restrictive and it bugs me... y would i want a bigger one jsut as restrictive? im much happier with my laptop but this may appeal to some people i guess

J.Name said...

my professor was asked if you could use the ipad in class, he didn't know what it was lol. Welcome to the 21st century prof!

The special one. said...

I prefer a laptop.

Cowbellrocker said...

I dont get the appeal of ipads. Ipods, yes, ipads are big clunky and annoying

aZZo said...

Tablets are so useless, they'll never take over real laptops, only hipsters that use them for facebook

thecatzpajamas said...

wow thats crazy. by 50% . fucking apple. theyre genius

Austin Da Silveira said...

interesting article, I had read that it wasn't so much taking a bite out of the laptop market as it was absolutely cannibalizing the netbook industry.

remzi said...

Ipads are expensive

grizz said...

i just know 1 dude who has an ipad.

SubparTrader said...

I like iPads, I was pretty skeptical about them until I tried one, they are neat.

Engelhart said...

I'm not too surprised. It fits that niche market of people who need something bigger than an iPod Touch, but aren't quite willing to fork out $1000+ for a laptop.

Dan said...

I love my iPad :)

Slumph said...

i agree luigibomb.

AnbuJustin said...

I'd take a thinkpad any day of the week. Ipads get girls though. but then again most girls dont know computers

comradejoker.blogspot.com/ said...

Oh gawd...everyone is getting suckered into the campaign scheme.

EightRocket said...

I still thikn the iPad is stupid :T

Final Fantasy XIV Fan said...

silly ipad xD you suck

Cacti said...

all of my hate

stocald said...

ipad doesnt sound like an electronic device.

Mantooth said...

iPads seem sorta cool, but there's no way in hell I'd get one instead of a laptop. Other than internet shit, literally nothing I do on my laptop can be done on an iPad.

Abigale Consulting said...

I like my labtop.

Keki said...

I had an iPad but swapped it for an iphone 4.
Honestly I would just get a laptop.

dopdavid said...

i want to see the iPads with computer os capabilities and then i will purchase one of them

KayZee said...

i think this sort of electronic device is going to take off. i think they are really cool even though i dont own one (or a laptop). might pick up the ipad if i get a few $ from the blog haha.

nick said...

ipad sucks actually

crose0689 said...

apple is like the wallmart of technology its all crap but somehow its still taking over

Some Guy said...

why settle for a stripped down OS lol?

jj_srk said...

i could use one along side a desktop, but until its more powerful i will not be able to use one as i would a laptop. it'd be great for class though. i may get one just for that

DDRMidgetID said...

they need more brands of cheap tablet laptops :(

The Angry Vegetarian said...

Wow, 50 percent? That's insane!

I plan on buying an iPad within the next year and a new laptop (Macbook Pro) within the next two (a stat I'm sure Apple is happy with!). But there is no way I'd ever use an iPad to replace my usage of a laptop in any way.

Anonymous said...

How is this possible!? iPads are so useless... and everyone I know who has one wishes they had a keyboard and didn't have to hold it all the time!!! 8D ~~ Anyway, maybe Best Buy should stock up on nPads. They run windows.

Sweeeeeetas said...

While it is a useful device [toy] I do not think it is an adequate laptop/netbook replacement...

dmayne said...

nyce nyce

Amuse said...

ipads are stupid as shit

RatsRunThisTown said...

I can totally see why. After researching the different specs between a netbook and an iPad, I would choose the iPad any day so it doesn't surprise me that sales are being affected.

gypsycore said...

What were apple trying to replace with the iPad?

An iPod for the optically challenged?

ApĆ³ said...

I don't see why people would honestly have to buy a iPad instead of a laptop. It's a real dumb reason sure the iPad has a little bit more mobility but you still have the problem of no internet if your going to go ahead and waste almost 500 dollars then why not go with a netbook or something for a total of like 300 dollars and buy yourself an iPod Touch or something. I personally would lol! But that's my opinion.

TSFan said...

maybe a government bail out for dell, gateway, and compaq? lol jk

nick said...

i am considering buying an ipad instead of a la[ptop.any advice?

pixel said...

that is just silly, the ipad is nothing like a laptop replacement - you can't even print from it right?

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