Apple reports strong quarter but the iPad is in serious trouble

Apple reported their quarterly earnings today, with all metrics basically in-line.

The company reported $51.5 billion in revenue, and $11.1 billion in net profits, setting a 12-month corporate record for profits at $53.4 billion.

Apple sold 48.05 million iPhones, a bit under expectations, but still good for a 22 percent increase year-over-year. The company says it expects to sell between 74-76 million iPhones for the holiday quarter, growth of under 5 percent year-over-year at best.

Macs continued to see low single-digit growth, and margins increased to 39.9 percent compared to expectations of 39.3 percent. Apple also now has $206 billion in cash, a number that is hard to fathom.

On the other side, the iPad seems to be in serious trouble, with shipments down 20 percent year-over-year to 9.88 million units; the lowest number since 2011. It is becoming increasingly clear that the tablet market has peaked, and that owners are not upgrading on a yearly cycle but rather every two or three years, if at all.

Written by: Andre Yoskowitz @ 27 Oct 2015 22:46

SoTired

It's not that the tablet market has peaked, it's that more people are choosing hybrids that function as both a tablet and a laptop. You know, those refrigerator-toaster things that confused Cook so much.

28.10.2015 03:21 #1

YummyCS

Nah it's peaked. I've had an ipad for 5 years and I still barely use it and would never ever consider upgrading unless I was an artist for that special ipencil.

28.10.2015 06:47 #2

lamain

I also purchased a tablet from Asus and have no plans on replacing it. It is now around 2-3 years old and still function for what I purchased it for. There is just no reason to upgrade it. I did purchase a surface pro 3 this year and love it. But I just do not see the surface as a tablet first. I use it more like a laptop that can be a tablet.

28.10.2015 13:50 #3

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