Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

iPad Pro Accounted for Less Than One-Third of Apple's Tablet Sales Last Quarter

The iPad Pro might be a professional tool for creatives, but I'm still waiting till I can create pivots in excel for iOS... or numbers for that matter.
I'm mostly frustrated that Apple leaves the pro of iPad Pro up to third parties when it comes to iOS software.

AND I'm not sure a pencil or a finger are that good for excel work and reporting an entire day.

So I'm not surprised it's only a third of the sales.
 
formerapplefan said:
No ****. The big one is a niche product that is impractical for most people, and the small one is like an Air 2 but more expensive and with the annoying camera bump in the rear.
Click to expand...
Exactly. I would love to get one. Because of the stylus, but can't use it if its wobbling on the table because of the camera bump
 
Cost prohibitive perhaps?? iPad Pro is priced well into laptop territory and offers far less functionality. The greatest thing about the first iPad was the price. Affordable to most people and justified for limited use cases (surfing net, reading mail and watching netflix). IPads are now priced well out of that affordable range for most people - for what they do and what they are used for.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Agit21
Unless there is an incredible deal on a iPad this upcoming Black Friday I'm content with my iPhone 7 Plus. To be honest if Apple followed Steve Jobs advice on not entertaining large phones I would still be interested in a iPad. You start to see product overlap with these devices and you kill the need to own one as a causal user.
 
That's a shame, because it means Apple is making even more profit, it sells more devices that are older and cost way less to manufacture as a result, especially the Air, then the iPad that is newer and costs money to make.

They couldn't even be bothered to update the iPads this year... if people stopped buying them then they will update them, but as they are laughing all the way to the bank why would they bother?

Personally I consider my 9.7" iPad Pro to be a laptop replacement, but it entirely depends on what you do with it of course.
 
  • Like
Reactions: pat500000
Bubba Satori said:
Even the easily fooled weren't fooled by the Pro nonsense.
Laughable.
A Pro would have run OSX, not a phone operating system.
A Pro would have had a file system courtesy of above.
A Pro would have had full windowed multi-tasking.
A Pro would have real mouse support.
A Pro would have had ports that pros need.
A Pro would have had the option for more than 4GB of memory.
Click to expand...
Looks like you need a pro laptop not a tablet. Pro is short for professional, meaning being paid to do work. Many professionals can use this iPad to help in do work. It doesn't mean it's a replacement for their computer.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Booch21
i love my ipad pro. it's a great product if you *can* afford it. i use it at work every day to take notes and finally achieved to replace paper after all.
it's a niche product - so i expected that it would sell less.

EDIT: i really would love mouse support though!
 
  • Like
Reactions: deany
On a positive note my friend has the 9.7" Pro from launch (via air) and you'd have to literally have to prise it out of her hands.
She loves it and wouldn't be without it.
 
Harmonious Zen said:
Agreed. No one really needs an iPad because Apple never came up with a compelling reason to have one. It's just a bigger iPhone.
Click to expand...

I'll go with 50% of your statement.

iPads (I still have my iPad2) do serve a purpose if one just uses it to consume content.
(E-mail, websites, messages) Already needs a special app when you hit flash. (Still plenty of those
around and not only porn)

Based on just viewing and minor tasks I'd welcome a really large tablet, say 17".

The second you want to work with it, even with the iPad Pro you are out of luck.

I also don't understand why they do not match the iPhone camera specs to the iPads (I know would look goofy to take pics with that, but so what?)

No connectivity ports. The highly touted USB-C they are now getting off on should be in there . At least ONE!

They will cull the iPad line from the bottom up as sales disappear.

The pro looks more like : Look what we can do rather than a serious business effort.

Can't believe how negative I have gotten towards Apple after 32 years, but that MBP offering is (still) hard to take.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: ThaRuler
Rob_2811 said:
You might and thats a credit to you but most won't. Its amazing I've recommended iOS apps to people and when they've found out its costs £2.99 their reaction is "How much ??" :eek:. They wouldn't think twice about going into Starbucks and spending that on a Gingerbread Latte.

Another problem is the business models that are allowed on the App Store. The lack of a free trial system is a killer for pro level software (see the comments from sketch in my last post)

For example say i've got a great App out for the iPad Pro for artist that uses the pencil but i've priced it at £70. Nobody is going to pay that straight away without a trial period.

Apple is slowly starting to open the app store but its still unworkable for most developers of pro software. Take Pixcelmator as an example what are they selling their app for on iOS, something like £3.
Click to expand...

There are a lot of us willing to spend real money on professional apps. Not anywhere near a majority of iOS users, because phones. But plenty of us. In addition to a trial period, the app store needs shopping tools, famously. How am I going to identify professional level software among thousands of free crap with in app purchases?
 
  • Like
Reactions: Kiwikat88
Charge stupid prices for under-featured hardware and you won't sell many of them. Surprise surprise that only the dumbest of fanboys are paying these prices.
 
  • Like
Reactions: jb-net
I love my 12.9" pro but it's not something I'd give to my kids to use unlike the iPad mini which is a great device for kids, I think a huge share of iPads are used by kids so the figures would make sense.
 
  • Like
Reactions: rams
They really really I mean really need this pro line to be a surface type device for it to succeed. Just increasing the size from a phone to tablet with same iOS is such crap.
 
I gave my iPad away. Didn't like it. A plus sized iPhone IMO is the better choice. I'll never buy another iPad.
 
I have the smaller iPad Pro and I really like it. The Pencil is still a novelty for me, but it does work beautifully. I've used it for sketching and have been really impressed. I do think that for many people, a regular iPad would be all the computer they would need. An iPad Pro would be overkill. I wouldn't be surprised if the regular iPads eventually have all the features of the current Pro. The only thing Pro would come to designate is "more advanced tech".

The iPad is a great device for staying connected and creating certain content while I'm traveling. But does it replace my Mac Pro? Not yet. I think in time it could, if the app ecosystem continues to grow and improve.

This analysis says that iPads are actually gaining market share:

https://www.engadget.com/2016/10/31/ipad-regains-tablet-market-share/
 
Thinking about iPad Pro a little more, as an owner (and more), I have this growing panic. I have trusted Apple to make great products that deliver. I can and will pay for that. And Apple clearly still makes great hardware products and has a mostly consistent software trajectory that keeps a lot of the brand promise. But I have this growing fear that Apple is more interested in profit than great products for users. The designs, iPad Pro included, continue a legacy that is getting long in the tooth, even though under-the-hood Apple still has a lead. But the overall products are starting to feel more like profit traps than great products: "buy me, I have racing stripes." This is crushing for one who has bought into the Apple brand for a long, long time. The iPad Pro feels like an idea that has squeezed all that it can out of the current design. Macs feel the same. iPhone is right there as well, although I hold our irrational hope that the 10th anniversary and next iPhone moves the bar. But there is something off with Apple these days. They milk things for every last ounce. That's not what got there here, and that change makes me feel that I have bought in for too long. I'm not proclaiming doom. I am offering anxiety. Their great products aren't feeling very innovative these days. In this specific case I see the iPad Pro as a big iPhone with a stylus. Why would people buy it? And this is coming from one who did.
 
  • Like
Reactions: sideshowuniqueuser, OutSpoken, ThaRuler and 2 others
Aaaaa! The iPad Pro! Horrible! Horrible! No one buys it!

Let's see, there's the Mini, Air and Pro. Two-thirds of the product lines account for a little more than two-thirds of the sales. Stupid math. It takes all the fun out of these posts.
 
IDC did not share its methodology behind calculating iPad Pro sales specifically, but vaguely notes that it uses proprietary tools and research processes.
Click to expand...

Interesting, but Too vague for me to take seriously.

Since Apple doesn't release detailed sales numbers, it is all just an expensive, highly funded guess.

kazmac said:
As much as I loved the pencil, iPP is way too expensive. If I wanted to spend over $1k on an Apple computer it wouldn't be an iPP.
Click to expand...
The pro 9.7 starts at ~$600, 12.1 ~$800. Clearly with more storage the price goes up, but you can buy a reasonable 9.7 for quite a bit less than a grand.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Kiwikat88
rams said:
i love my ipad pro. it's a great product if you *can* afford it. i use it at work every day to take notes and finally achieved to replace paper after all.
it's a niche product - so i expected that it would sell less.

EDIT: i really would love mouse support though!
Click to expand...

I think demand is really dependent on need. It's like my car and truck. I love my car because it's small, fuel efficient and cheap to maintain and repair; perfect vehicle to drive around downtown Chicago. But my truck is good when I have to buy the occasional 60" TV or bring home large pieces of furniture from outlet stores. This is how I view my iPhone and the iPad I use to own. While it's nice to drive around in a big SUV/Pick-up truck you ultimately don't need it if you don't have a large family or don't haul stuff on a daily basis.
That's why I sold my iPad; I just did not have a specific need for it. But others like yourself can build an argument for it. I think a lot of people are starting to realize that all they need is a phone and a laptop/desktop; the tablet does not solve both of those needs.
 
GadgetBen said:
Apple need to make a decision next year whether or not to finally introduce a hybrid Mac / iPad that a lot of people are shouting for.

Merge the iPad Pro with the Mac and keep a basic iPad range.
Click to expand...

Fortunately, Apple already made that decision.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back