Apple's New 2022 iPad Lineup Gives Customers More Options Than Ever

[Ihatefall]

It’s not about options

It’s about upselling

I agree.
Did you notice the differences in wallpaper?
On the air….the screen bezels seem to not be there because of the black wall paper.

On the 10th gen they are very much there because of the pink wallpaper.

 

[t0rqx]

I CANNOT

can you imagine the thought process that went into this?

View attachment 2097231

WTF did I just…this is called courage. Just when I thought I’ve seen it all today.

Gotta hand it to them. This is how courage REALLY looks like. And a modern drawing tablet for kids at a toystore.

 

[Love-hate 🍏 relationship]

I agree.
Did you notice the differences in wallpaper?
On the air….the screen bezels seem to not be there because of the black wall paper.

On the 10th gen they are very much there because of the pink wallpaper.

Exactly !!

 

[t0rqx]

Steve Jobs once advised the Nike CEO on improving their products. He said get rid of all the bad ones and keep the good ones. Apple is now doing the opposite.

 

[ProfessionalFan]

He said get rid of all the bad ones and keep the good ones

I think Steve was a brilliant man, but this isn't exactly advice that required rocket science.

 

[t0rqx]

I think Steve was a brilliant man, but this isn't exactly advice that required rocket science.

Explain to me why they are doing the opposite now.

 

[planteater]

Just buy a Mac.

 

[ProfessionalFan]

Explain to me why they are doing the opposite now.

How should I know?

 

[QuickSilverLining]

Someone mentioned early-mid 90s Apple with Performas and Quadras and Power Macs and Centris. They really do need to go back to this

 

[BlairMALL]

It’s not about options

It’s about upselling

I agree, but with the number of options, it seems like they are working way too hard at it. You can upsell from fewer options, IMO.

 

[BlairMALL]

They need to simplify their lineup again. We are back to the mid-90’s level of confusion.

I wonder if inventory is the only reason they don't simplify the lineup.

 

[Love-hate 🍏 relationship]

I agree, but with the number of options, it seems like they are working way too hard at it. You can upsell from fewer options, IMO.

you think so ? i honestly dont know . technically decoy effect requires a cheap and small product ,another bigger and more expensive ,and a third one in the middle ,that'll help push consoomer towards the bigger one . i'd think the more options,the easier it is to push you to spend a bit more,and a bit more...but i havent studied it yet

 

[neuropsychguy]

Steve Jobs once advised the Nike CEO on improving their products. He said get rid of all the bad ones and keep the good ones. Apple is now doing the opposite.

Which of the iPads are bad?

 

[dominiongamma]

Absolute mess of a line up

Yet apple fans keep buying and supporting the line up including from on here

 

[coolfactor]

What an embarrassment. Seriously, what was the point of releasing a "new iPad" when the existing iPad Air is virtually identical, and even more capable? To offer an option that's $100 cheaper? Sad.

Tim... get it together! This is not what Jobs taught you!

 

[davidwes]

This reeks of the posters Apple used to have to help you make a computer buying choice right before Jobs came back. They need to go back to basics. All iPads should be the same equipment with the only difference being size. Done.

Yes, this image really really makes me feel like that era before jobs came back!

 

[davidwes]

You mean like when there was an iPod shuffle and an iPod nano and an iPod classic and an iPod touch at the same time? Apple has had product lines with multiple models, editions, options, etc. for ages.

What? Those for 4 complete different products (no screen shuffle, touch screen, and then regular iPod in two sizes). Plus you would own multiple, the shuffle was great for running, the touch was great at your desk, etc.

 

[JCADX]

The lineup is a complete mess and is even making older options way more attractive.

-Why buy the new iPad 10 when is essentially an inferior iPad Air 4? (like the iPhone 14 Plus is an inferior 13 Pro Max). Air 4 can still be found in some retailers for cheap and will perform better.
-With fairly similar price point, Mini 6 has Pencil 2 support and laminated display while iPad 10 does not. But of course, if you need a bigger screen...
-iPad Pro M2 and M1 are really similar, but with a higher price point and who knows if M2 is throttled there.
-You have a new keyboard that has "pro" features, but just announced for the base iPad, which is supposedly the tablet aimed to education market and students.
-Having both the iPad 9 and 10 at the same time can make purchase options more confusing, as the 9 is offering an aging design with technologies that will surely be discontinued soon, like the Lightning port or even the Pencil 1 if Apple finds how to solve the weird adapter thing on iPad 11.

Also, all of them are crazy expensive in EU now, with the base iPad starting around the same price point you could buy a M1 Air in Amazon not too long ago (579€ and the Air was 611€). If you add the Pencil and the keyboard its almost the price of a Pro tablet, but for a repurposed Air 4.

This confusion is also present in the Mac lineup (M2 Macbook Air being fairly similar to M1 Pro Macbook Pro in equivalent specs but fanless, and competing with M1 Air performance) and the iPhone (14 and 13 being virtually the same phone differing in ram and 2 details, 14 Plus priced really close to the Pros and being inferior to 13 Pros...). Even Watch, with S6, S7 and S8 being almost the same thing, with the same chip and differing just in some sensors.

 

[Gasu E.]

Apple's 2022 lineup is more convoluted and less focused than ever. Too many overlapping products, becoming too confusing for buyers. There really doesn't need to be more than 2-3 model lines of iPad.

That's what they're doing. It's pretty clear that the vision for the line is the iPad 10 plus two sizes of Pro. The rest are just older models that each fill a market niche. Why discontinue them?

 

[citysnaps]

I don't understand why so many here are confused. It's not that tough.

 

[xaverine]

Just my view, I think Original iPad should be removed from the line up.
Air/Pro should cut the price for at least $100.

 

[cerealoatmeals]

apple screwed up everything, their are not in customer perspective to build a product anymore, they just wanted to effective the production line by sharing / re-using the component amongst their product.

 

[zapmymac]

Consuming media, browsing, and editing photos with a 2nd gen Pencil has been fine and continues to be fine, if not great on my 2018 3rd gen 12.9” iPad Pro.

Even better since I recently got a usb4/Thunderbolt4 usc-c to usb-c cable for my external SSD, the oem Cable doesn’t transfer data as fast as the iPad Pro allows.

hard pass from this Apple fan this time

 

[1557750]

Looks like a seeing eye chart.

Cover one eye and read as far as you can.

Whatever you stop on, that’s your model.

 

[Razorpit]

This thread is full of people seeming to think they are smarter than Apple about this topic. By all means people, contact Apple, get a lucrative consulting gig, and straighten out the terrible mistake they have made. If you know better, go fix Apple.

Anyone who follows my posts know I'm no fanboy. But I think Apple leadership is smart enough to make the right mix of products to achieve their revenue goals. If something doesn't make sense to achieve those goals, I'm confident they would cut the product. We've seen recent examples of products- even popular ones like original HomePod and iMac 27"- getting culled because they were not hitting Apple revenue/profit margin targets. They very tangibly prove they are willing to kill products that disappoint or are not lucrative enough.

This mix- confusing or not to "99% (if not more)" is what they believe they need to offer to achieve what will probably be another quarter(s) of "record revenue." All of the armchair marketers that are smarter than Apple in this thread should go take over Apple and fix this awful situation.

Else, until their dumb mistakes start showing up in revenue shortcomings, it appears that what they are doing is working very well in the measure that matters most to them and their stockholders.

I fully grasp the consumer desire for simplified product lines. But Apple is a GIGANTIC company now. It would likely be hard to keep up with their own revenue records if they operated like it was 1997-2003 or so again. Take that to an extreme and that would kill off iPhone, iPad and Watch entirely... so they can be just a computer company... or computer + iPod company (with much simpler product mix).

Yes, I also grasp that many of "us" are wanting a single iPhone option and a single iPad option, etc. but Apple has grown way beyond that yielding as much revenue. There are not 4 new iPhone options this year because Apple knows everyone is going to buy the one best choice and ignore the other 3. They are all the best choice for some slice of the total iphone market.

You are confusing past success with current business practices. We know what worked. You’re about to learn what doesn’t.