Apple Sells Over 300,000 iPads on First Day

[Master Chief]

300,000 isn't that many – for the USA – but it is a nice start.

And while I like the iPad, really, it is far from magical. Not a game changer. Just a logical next gadget – after the great iPod and iPhone products – be it one that I wouldn't want to trade in for anything else. At least not at the moment.

No more plain TV guides for me. Using the iPad from now on, but I hate it that I have to replace my new sound dock by Bose, with yet another. Oh well. Good for economy I guess.

BTW: Why isn't there a link to the Apple press release?

http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2010/04/05ipad.html

 

[Mr. MacPhisto]

it's so amazig tha there are still people who are so damn obsessed over paper-features... Yeah, the HP slate will have more features. It will also be harder to use, and the user will have to constantly hand-hold it.

Citation? You know this how? Because HP made it and anything Apple makes is instantly better because your kool-aid glass told you so?

This is like iPhone-launch all over again. In 2007 some basement-dwellers whined how some Symbian or WinMo-phones had more features than the iPhone had. Yeah, and fact is that those other phones worked like crap and they were clumsy as hell. But apparently those crapphones were better because they had more half-assed, useless features than iPhone had.

True enough, but you have yet to see the Slate, so you don't know.

Let me ask you a hypothetical. What if the Slate is JUST AS EASY to use as the iPad and more fully featured at a lower price than the most popular model?

BTW, you really have to hand hold the iPad to type on it effectively. That curved back should have been fully flat for better functionality, like the Slate. Betcha the Slate will be easier to type on in landscape mode on a flat surface.

yes. Slate-PC running Windows 7? Oh be still my beatin heart! How exactly is that different from tablet-pc running Windows XP? What exactly is interesting in that? They will be about as revolutionary as the ol' tablet-pc' were...

Let me see. Windows 7 has multi touch capability built in to the OS. Win7 is light years beyond XP. The Atom processor is much cooler.

And, as I've said so many times, I don't think the tablet is mass market anyways. But I wouldn't be surprised if the Slate is a better tablet than the iPad. Maybe it won't be. But I'm not an Apple nut with the blinders on on this one. Apple is not infallible and everything HP or MS makes isn't garbage. Windows 7, for instance, is better than OSX at this point IMHO. And I LIKE OSX and it was far better up until Win7. Now they are even at worst.

Looking at the lack of intelligence in our post, it makes me think that you must be an analyst or somehing.

Belittling an opponent is the proof of a small mind.

I made an argument that you really haven't refuted with any hard evidence other than items in the past that were not mostly built by HP. It is anecdotal evidence and probably mostly stemming from your emotional attachment to Apple and its products.

95% of the people could say the Slate blows away the iPad and you'd likely be one of the ones who would just say it was impossible because Apple didn't make it and Windows XP on the tablet was such a failure.

Frankly, I think all the tablets will be nothing more than footnotes. Apple just didn't want to cannibalize their MacBook sales with a netbook. Apple hates giving their customers a wide array of options with a multitude of price points. That's why I stopped using the Mac after six years in Mac land. What Apple doesn't realize is that more options for consumers could translate into higher sales for them. A quad core mini tower at a reasonable price would be a huge hit, but they prefer to for you to the Mac Pro at double the price.

 

[kas23]

This is a huge number. Considering some people are waiting for the 3G version.


In comparison, google only sold 135,000 nexus ones in 74 days.

Motorola only sold 250,000 droids in 7 days.

It's very hard to compare cellphone numbers sold to the iPad. For the most part, only a very small fraction of the population at one moment are able to buy cellphones - those who are not already tied into a contract. The number of potential cellphone buyers is very restricted. Not only that, there are hundreds of other existing cellphones to compete for customers. As for the iPad, there is no contract. Therefore, everyone is easily able to go out an buy one. And, there is no current competition.

 

[JAT]

American ignorance.... U.S. only launch is a "launch into the world"... ?

LOL, Steve Jobs seems to think there is nothing outside of USA's borders.

/written from my Nokia E71 in Canada

And according to these posts (and others seen all the time), USA is not part of "the world". Meh, you cancel each other out. Stupid, egotistical BS everywhere. Go to a non-USA website, then. Or maybe you should talk about the topic at hand.

 

[ten-oak-druid]

Apparently if you buy an ipad, at some point you will be approached by someone who doesn't like the ipad as you are happily reading a book or playing a game on it. You will then be told you can't possibly really be having fun because he can't picture himself having fun with one. If you do not conform to his tastes he will say you are not in fact having fun but that you are pretending to for Apple's sake.

 

[ddarko]

A million by year's end would be a failure. I'd guess Apple is hoping to move at least 3 million this year on the bottom end.

That's right. It's YOUR guess. Thanks for defining what is a success or failure based on your subjective opinion.

As for MS, I doubt they are crapping themselves. They don't make hardware.

Given Microsoft's stellar, almost unblemished history of being unable to predict or grow into new markets - the Internet, Google, the iPhone - the lack of Microsoft's concern - if true - would probably be as sure as sign as anything that the iPad will be a great success. Besides, you're wrong, Microsoft most certainly makes hardware: the Xbox, the Zune, mice, keyboards, webcams and, given the tight specs on the upcoming Series 7 Phones, they practically make them as well. And for more than two years, it's made the T-Mobile Sidekick device:

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13860_3-9868954-56.html

Guess you missed that, huh.

As I've said elsewhere, HP's Slate will run Win7 Starter, not a cell phone OS. It will be able to multitask out of the box and run things like MS Word, Open Office, etc.

Blah blah blah blah blah. So repetitious, so tiresome, so clueless. Like looking at a car and complaining that it can't fly.

And keep perspective here. Netbooks are pacing to sell about 80 million units this year. The iPhone has sold around 45 million over its whole life span. The iPod has sold near 250 million units over the past nine years. Netbooks will surpass iPod sales in a little less than four years.

More numbers! Fancy! Let's throw out more apples-and-oranges comparisons of dissimilar markets with dissimilar products aimed at dissimilar consumers for dissimilar needs and uses and then draw conclusions. Why, there were 30 billion widgets sold last year worldwide. Apple is a complete failure compared to the widget manufacturers of the world.

The AppleTV was also called a game changer by Jobs and by people here. It was hailed as the device that would kill the DVD and physical media.

Pure fiction. Apple and Jobs has never called Apple TV a game changer or anything remotely close to it. Jobs called the IPHONE "revolutionary" at its launch and Apple TV launched at the same event but that moniker was never applied to Apple TV. But Apple has been very clear and upfront about its expectations for Apple TV. It's a "hobby." So now besides bogus arguments, you're making stuff up.

For the iPad to really be a game changer, I think it needs to sell in the stratosphere, moving around 10 million units this year with 15-20 million sold next year.

More numbers pulled out of thin air to buttress a personal opinion. Maybe you should work as a research analyst?

The portable computing market is much larger than the iPod market. And the iPhone is nice, but it accounts for around 2% of all cell phones being used now. It is the most profitable phone out there, but that matters more to stockholders like me than it does to the average joe.

Since Apple doesn't pursue volume over profitability, why is volume suddenly the appropriate yardstick to measure the success or failure of the iPad? Oh I know, because you like fancy-sounding numbers.

Forgive the sarcasm but your NUMEROUS posts on iPad - which all boils down to "I don't like the iPad and everyone else must share my opinion" merits it.

 

[gnasher729]

He's referring to the ridiculous upcharge we ALL pay for buying anything with the Apple name on it. Early adopters are the biggest Apple victims. I should know, I was one of the ones that got ripped by the initial iPhone (worst phone I've ever owned). And please inform of which Apple laptops or desktops come with the option to drop the price and not include the OS.

That's why I said "Microsoft marketing and people mindlessly repeating it". When I buy a product, I pay for the product, and I have to pay taxes. I don't get any value for taxes. When you buy an Apple product, you pay for the product (you also pay state taxes, VAT, or whatever it is called where you live, but not relevant here). You may think the product is expensive, and I won't contradict you, Apple doesn't sell cheap stuff. You may think it is overpriced, and I will contradict in many cases, and if it is overpriced, then don't buy it. But there is no _tax_ on it. That is a very, very clever invention of Microsoft marketing and nothing else.

Now about the difference between Apple and Microsoft: I said you can't (easily) buy a Dell or HP or Toshiba computer without paying for Windows. You said you can't buy a Macintosh without MacOS X. Spot the difference: Dell, HP or Toshiba computers are _not_ made by Microsoft. Microsoft forced these manufacturers through its monopoly power to pay for a Windows license even when the computer was sold without Windows. Macs are made by Apple. I don't complain that you can't buy a Microsoft XBox without Microsoft XBox software, or a Microsoft Zune without the Microsoft Zune software. The complaint is that you can't buy a _Dell_ computer without _Microsoft_ software.

 

[cmaier]

The Slate will be better because of this: multitasking.

You'll need that to run your antivirus at the same time as displaying the "this program crashed. would you like to send MS a crash report?" box.

The Slate is also smaller than the iPad and likely more portable.

You're funny.

 

[LagunaSol]

I was thinking though that for $499 it is almost like getting a quality photo frame that can cost over $100 but with many more capabilities.

A good Sony 10" photo frame with 2GB of storage (DPF-X1000) retails at $300. Yet people are calling an iPad (that does infinitely more) for $499 overpriced???

And I never heard much outrage about the 10" Kindle's $489 price.

Apparently Apple is held to a different standard when it comes to product pricing.

 

[nagromme]

An amazing start to a product that will change most of the computing done by most people in the years ahead. I haven’t seen this much sheer terror from trolls in a very very long time.

And, I suspect, a big day for A. A. Milne! Congrats on your 249,000 eBooks downloaded!

 

[Skoal]

Sure as hell did better than all the other "tablet" devices, though.

So the best feature of the iPad is that it sells well?

 

[farmboy]

American ignorance.... U.S. only launch is a "launch into the world"... ?

We're not ignorant. Last time I checked the US was still part of the world. Note he didn't say "the whole world." or "global launch".

 

[Master Chief]

...
Blah blah blah blah blah. So repetitious, so tiresome, so clueless. Like looking at a car and complaining that it can't fly...

Let me chime in. And I do this since you, apparently, skip the fact that both the HP Slate and Apple iPad are in the same market. So he is right, and you are wrong, because you start comparing it [the iPad] with airplanes?!? Remarkable isn't it. Especially since your next blurb contains the following text: "...Let's throw out more apples-and-oranges comparisons of dissimilar markets with dissimilar products...".
Right. Not a smart move.

 

[LagunaSol]

Let me ask you a hypothetical. What if the Slate is JUST AS EASY to use as the iPad and more fully featured at a lower price than the most popular model?

What If. What If. The Microsoft world dreams in What Ifs. What if leprechauns frolicked with unicorns at the end of rainbows? It's irrelevant to the discussion.

Let's wait for this magical Slate to actually hit the market before we start with the iPad Killer adulation, hmm?

 

[pdjudd]

So the best feature of the iPad is that it sells well?

What good is anything if nobody is willing to buy it?

 

[Master Chief]

What good is anything if nobody is willing to buy it?

That's virtually impossible since Apple already sold 300,000 iPad's on launch day. Go figure!

 

[pdjudd]

And, I suspect, a big day for A. A. Milne! Congrats on your 249,000 eBooks downloaded!

Something tells me that he isn't in any position to do cartwheels.

 

[Dooger]

I remember people like you talking about the original iPod in the same way. "Bah humbug, no one is going to dump their CD player for this stupid little gizmo!"

Fortunately while some people merely talk about others being unable to change the world, those others are actually doing it.

That's a messy final sentence but I think I know what you're trying to say...and you're wrong. The analogy is completely backward. People are rejecting the iPad because it would be a regressive step for them.
Your argument suggests that in the early iPod days consumers failed to see the functionality they would gain by dropping their CDs; whereas these days iPad adoption means the loss of a lot of the functionality a laptop brings. Skypers, to pull one example, don't want that functionality taken from them, and are therefore shunning this device. So what has this got to do with the iPod other than some hackneyed parallel you alone can see?

 

[bergmef]

Let me chime in. And I do this since you, apparently, skip the fact that both the HP Slate and Apple iPad are in the same market. So he is right, and you are wrong, because you start comparing it [the iPad] with airplanes?!? Remarkable isn't it. Especially since your next blurb contains the following text: "...Let's throw out more apples-and-oranges comparisons of dissimilar markets with dissimilar products...".
Right. Not a smart move.

How do they compare side by side? I haven't tried an HP slate yet.

 

[ten-oak-druid]

Yeah, how dare you have an opinion contrary to the hive!

I think you changed the topic of the little discussion going on between posters here. When he asked "why do you post here" it was in response to someone peppering a post with comments about Apple "sheep", etc. You could picture the spittle flying from the person as he typed.

It is quite hilarious to see people come onto a board and vent about people you do not conform to their opinion of Apple being an inferior product.

It was pretty clear to me the response "why do you post here" was about that attitude and the insults laced through the post. It was not in fact about having a contrary opinion.

 

[admanimal]

I think you changed the topic of the little discussion going on between posters here. When he asked "why do you post here" it was in response to someone peppering a post with comments about Apple "sheep", etc. You could picture the spittle flying from the person as he typed.

It is quite hilarious to see people come onto a board and vent about people you do not conform to their opinion of Apple being an inferior product.

It was pretty clear to me the response "why do you post here" was about that attitude and the insults laced through the post. It was not in fact about having a contrary opinion.

What bugs a lot of us I think is that we don't understand why people voluntarily come to a site that is clearly meant for Apple/Mac enthusiasts and participate only to bash Apple products. If I spent all of my time talking on forums for products I wasn't interested in, I'd have to quit my job.

It's one thing to be a fan in general of some Apple products and have gripes about others, but coming here and being completely anti-Apple makes no sense to me.

 

[LagunaSol]

What were Windows 7 sales numbers again? MS made nearly double in profits what Apple made last year and it was a slow year for MS until the end.

McDonalds sells a ton of hamburgers. What's your point exactly?

You're delusional if you can't see that Apple has center stage in the tech world right now, regardless of how many copies of mediocre software Microsoft is pumping out.

And how are they steering? MS showed off a tablet at CES before Apple ever showed one off. As I said, I betcha Apple rushed it to market to get in ahead of the Slate.

LOL! More like Microsoft rushed to show off the Slate (launch date: sometime) when Apple tablet rumors started to get hot and heavy.

The Ballmer Slate "Hey, look at us too!" demo was obvious in its emptiness.

Windows 7 is a huge improvement over all prior versions of Windows.

WINDOWS 7 IS NOT A TABLET OS BY DESIGN.

The Slate will be better because of this: multitasking. Unless Apple gets that going before June, that's a huge advantage.

My guess is the iPad will be multitasking before we see this magical Slate in stores.

And for usability, doesn't having a memory card reader and the ability to plug in USB devices into the Slate qualify as both better usability and functionality?

What, no parallel printer port? FAIL.

The Slate is also smaller than the iPad and likely more portable.

LOL!

Why get a tablet when I have a perfectly good compact Sony Vaio laptop with a BD player, 4GB or memory, a large HDD, and a Core i5 processor? All that for $1200 and I can actually do real work AND consume information on it.

Your Vaio sounds like a perfect machine for your needs. But no need to pee in everyone's Cheerios who find an iPad perfect for their needs.

I'm just making a comparison to the Slate because IT IS more fully featured.

And it will be a big dud in the marketplace, just like every similar "Windows hacked for touch use" device that came before it.

Computers serve for both leisure and serious business. Why would you pay $500+ for something if you also need a laptop to do anything serious? You want to craft a PPT or Keynote presentation and do it in a fully featured environment? Write a legal brief?

NEWSFLASH: 99% of consumers don't craft PPT presentations or write legal briefs. It's true!

But I don't expect the most ideologically pure Apple zealots to see this.

Yes, obviously anyone who disagrees with you is a koolaid-swigging cultist. We get it. We've all see this same song and dance before.

I know NO ONE that isn't a pure Apple nut that is interested in forking over money for this thing.

Oddly enough, the "Apple nuts" I know are taking a wait-and-see approach, while the "regular people" I know are talking about the iPad and wanting one.

Will the iPad be a hit? Only time will tell.

 

[ddarko]

Let me chime in. And I do this since you, apparently, skip the fact that both the HP Slate and Apple iPad are in the same market. So he is right, and you are wrong, because you start comparing it [the iPad] with airplanes?!? Remarkable isn't it. Especially since your next blurb contains the following text: "...Let's throw out more apples-and-oranges comparisons of dissimilar markets with dissimilar products...".
Right. Not a smart move.

Wrong. He was comparing a device with a desktop OS grafted onto tablet form versus the iPad which has its own OS designed for the tablet form. It's not the form factor that sets the iPad - or the iPhone for that matter - apart from desktops, laptops and even Windows tablet. It's the philosophy that's molded the software. That's the difference that he doesn't understand. If you want a desktop-in-tablet form, the iPad isn't for you. But that's no basis for criticizing the iPad since it wasn't designed to be a desktop-in-tablet form.

Apples and oranges.

 

[*LTD*]

So the best feature of the iPad is that it sells well?

No. It's *why* it sells well. It's *why* iPods have been so phenomenally great. It's *why* OS X is the Gold Standard of operating systems. It's *why* the Mac's design makes the competition drool, right before they get whipped up into a frenzy about their race for the bottom of the profit barrel. It's *why* the media only ever really gushes over Apple products. It's *why* Apple is dictating the rules of the game. It's *why* every device the competition squeezes out and pinches off is compared to the nearest Apple device (before being dismissed as a failed "killer".) It's *why* consumers are in love with Apple, and not Microsoft, not HP, not Dell, not . . . etc. It's *why* Apple commands the kind of mindshare it does and can kill competitors' products in the womb.

 

[LagunaSol]

What bugs a lot of us I think is that we don't understand why people voluntarily come to a site that is clearly meant for Apple/Mac enthusiasts and participate only to bash Apple products. If I spent all of my time talking on forums for products I wasn't interested in, I'd have to quit my job.

Unless your job was to spend your time talking on forums about products you aren't interested in, if you know what I mean. Things that make you go "Hmm..."