Apple is Now Producing 2.3M+ iPads Monthly

Daily Tech ^ | July 6, 2010 10:08 AM | Jason Mick (Blog)

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Despite iPhone issues, life is good for Apple, thanks to the best-selling iPad

In response to record demand for the Apple iPad, Apple, Inc. is stepping up its production efforts.  As of last month the Cupertino giant topped 3 million units sold worldwide.

Apple originally set a goal of reaching production of 2.5 million units a month to be reached by December, but it now appears that it may hit that number well ahead of schedule, in response to high demand.

According to Digitimes Research:

Apple is estimated to have outsourced 2.3-2.35 million iPads to Taiwan players in July with 58-60% for the Wi-Fi and 3G hybrid model despite Wi-Fi only models having stronger sales in the first half of 2010, Kuo noted.

That's up greatly from the 1.2 million units that Digitimes Research estimated in June.  And it's way above the 700,000 units that the iPad began shipping per month at launch in April (U.S.).

The move indicates two things -- first that Apple plans on selling a lot more iPads, and second that it's trying to push the public to make those sales of the more lucrative 3G-ready iPad (a move its U.S. carrier AT&T is surely excited about).

The wildest analyst estimates pegged the iPad at selling 8 million units this year.  If Apple can continue to quickly ramp up production, though, it stands to sell as many as 16-18 million units this year.  We'd be conservative, bumping our previous estimate to 15 million units for the year.

This terrific sales success is great news for Apple on a number of levels.  First, it establishes the company as the top player in a promising emerging market.  Second it should lead to a "halo effect" boosting sales of other Apple products.  And finally, it should help Apple to overcome the negative publicity of the numerous issues that the iPhone 4 suffered -- including signal woes, proximity sensor malfunctions, and not fully cured sealants.

Later this month the iPad will come to more countries overseas, including Austria, Belgium, Hong Kong, Ireland, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand and Singapore, which should help to continue to stoke the sales flame.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Wow...may not be many buyers left for the followon efforts for other companies.

[ctdonath2]

A billion dollars a month in revenue from just the iPad.
Take that, Apple haters.

[usconservative]

Pretty incredible numbers for a device pronounced dead on arrival by many on here.

(by the way I posted this using my iPad at a whole foods in Chicago while at lunch.)

[SeekAndFind]

Last I heard, APPLE is an American Company.

The next obvious question is this -— WHERE is APPLE manufacturing these products ?

[pgkdan]

So you can surf the web using the IPad? Do you have to use ATT for connectivity or can you network with your existing service provider?

[Loud Mime]

Here is a breakdown of the innards of an I-Pad.

It's mostly battery and screen. The rest of the stuff is small and well hidden.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

It is likely that it is engineered and designed mostly in the USA ( but mostly ) has other components ( circuit boards, chips )...manufactured in Taiwan and assembled in Asia.

But I don't know for certain.

[GOP_Lady]

I will be purchasing an iPad tomorrow. Yeah!

[Truth29]

"The next obvious question is this -— WHERE is APPLE manufacturing these products ?"

I read reports attributing production to both Taiwan and Mainland China. The mainland China reports have also cited poor working conditions and alleged worker suicides.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Be sure and see the link at Post #7.....very revealing....

The circuitboard carries the APPLE Stamp:

[ctdonath2]

Surf the web? Anywhere, anytime, always on. 11 hour nominal battery life (my long-run heavy-use test yesterday hit empty in 6 hours). This thing is a game changer.

AT&T is the only one to support it for now. Capability is there (via replaceable microSIM(?) card) for others to support it, but nobody has yet.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

From the breakdown (see link at post #7)...step 15...we have:

This means the A4 processor is probably being manufactured by Samsung....(That would be Korea... I think )

Wrong...from 1996 :

Samsung invests $1.5 billion in North American manufacturing facilities;

[BunnySlippers]

I totally love my iPad. Got the 3G.

[BunnySlippers]

You will love it! I carry mine with me everywhere.

[Fabozz]

"The next obvious question is this -— WHERE is APPLE manufacturing these products?"

In countries whose citizens actually want to work for a living. The citizens of this country, by contrast, claim they want to work, then put the lie to that by continually voting statists--from both parties--into office. When US voters stop electing politicians who loot the productive to coddle the indolent, then you can start criticizing companies for seeking sunnier climes.

[ctdonath2]

From tic.com:

Say that we had first contact with some super (economically) advanced aliens.

…and pretty soon they set up factories here.

…and I was offered a job in one of these factories, doing software engineering.

The pay is $400k/year.

The work week is 20 hours long.

The work environment is far better than I’m used to – great internal decoration, well tended plants, a zen-like water garden near my desk, massages every other day.

…and then left-wing alien “sentient being rights activists” started protesting, because I was being forced to work for less than a quarter of the prevailing wage in Alpha Centauri, and my work hours were twice as long as the legal norms in Alpha Centauri, and I didn’t have every mandatory benefits like “other other year off”, and “free AI musical composition mentoring”.

…and then left-wing alien “sentient being rights activists” wanted to make it illegal for my employer and I to contract with each other at mutually beneficial terms.

…then I would be rip shit that some elitist who had never visited me, or knew of my actual alternatives on the ground presumed to decide that I shouldn’t have this opportunity.

Which brings me to my core point: Chinese factory conditions may not be the exact cup of tea for a San Francisco graphic designer or a Connecticut non-profit ecologist grant writer … but they’re, by definition, better than all the other alternatives available to the Chinese workers (or the factories would find it impossible to staff up).

Butt out, clueless activists.

[ctdonath2]

Make that “From tjic.com:”.
The iPad does have pretty aggressive spelling auto-correction to overcome the no-tactile-feedback virtual keyboard issues (fingers tend to drift when typing fast), which is unfriendly to some website names.

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Here it is....all apart:

***********************************************

[BunnySlippers]

Thanks for the ping!