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.
