iPad's 'Cannibalization' of Notebook Computers Disputed

[alhedges]

Wait, from what I understood the Best Buy CEO had clarified to say that he was talking about netbooks, not notebooks. In fact all the comparisons I have heard have been about netbooks.

Not exactly, but sort of. Here's the quote to parse:

"If 100 people came and bought an iPad, what we saw was that 50 of them--and this is just compared with previous netbook trends in that store in that week--50 of those people were incremental, and there were 50 less netbooks sold versus if there were 1000. You follow me?"

In other words, 50% of people who bought iPads at BB bought them instead of netbooks (in this particular week). There's no 50% drop in netbooks sales, however, as BB (as he later explained) doesn't sell many iPads - thus idea that instead of selling 1000 netbooks, they will sell 950 because 50 people who would have otherwise bought netbooks bought an iPad instead.

It's interesting that the BB CEO communicates about as well as the average BB salesperson.

 

[cppguy]

He clarified it later, he was "brutally misquoted". He meant netbooks, not notebooks, and the cannibalization lasted "during a very narrow window".

 

[cvaldes]

i must be missing something about these reports.

how can the ipad cannibalize Notebook sales when you need a computer to set it up? i guess more people have desktops than notebooks and are using them to set the ipads up?

The people who are buying iPads typically have multiple computers in their homes. Something like 85%+ of Mac households also have a Windows PC. The self-reported income of the initial wave of iPad buyers is over $100,000.

iPads aren't being purchased by people who don't have computers and are choosing between and iPad and other device.

 

[alhedges]

The people who are buying iPads typically have multiple computers in their homes. Something like 85%+ of Mac households also have a Windows PC. The self-reported income of the initial wave of iPad buyers is over $100,000.

According to this more recent survey, 39% of iPad users have an income greater than $80k. http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2369901,00.asp

Which doesn't surprise me seeing how young the iPad users I see (mostly) are.

 

[alent1234]

i must be missing something about these reports.

how can the ipad cannibalize Notebook sales when you need a computer to set it up? i guess more people have desktops than notebooks and are using them to set the ipads up?

in the last 10 years notebook sales have grown faster than desktop sales. i know people that have been buying laptops since the late 1990's and using them for basic things you can use the desktop for. i even bought a laptop as a gift a few months ago. people want to surf the internet on the couch.

since a laptop is overkill for most people iPad's fit. they have less features than netbooks but are more comfortable to use almost everywhere, lighter and better battery life.

all you need is a cheapo desktop and an iPad

 

[trip1ex]

This site and those surveys are 98% bs.

So no surprise.

Pretty obvious those it is taking a chunk of revenue from netbooks though.

 

[axual]

So ...

So, if 13 out of 100 people decided to eat lunch and nibble on "Uncle Murray's left forearm", you don't consider that cannibalizing?

Netbook = 100
iPad = 0
Where BuyerX enters and selects iPad
While Netbook = Choice
then Netbook = 99 AND iPad = 1

 

[gnasher729]

heh, people sure are suddenly being defensive about iPad sales.

Did you read the article? They are defensive about netbook sales. Nobody doubts that the iPad is a huge success, with Apple building more than 2 million a month now just to keep up with demand. But interested circles (especially Acer) are getting very defensive indeed about the effect that this success has on netbook sales.

 

[beachnbum]

Asked in the local BB just a couple weeks back. He said netbooks hadn't been selling much even before iPad.

fwiw.

 

[Mad City Court]

This is a misleading statement. Just because customers were not intending to purchase a PC, does not mean that the iPad has not replaced this share of the market. If a customer responds that they had no intention to purchase a notebook PC, this can simply mean that the market is changing, there are newer and more convenient alternatives to suit their needs, and thusly, notebook PC's were not being considered in their search. The means the newer technology, (ie. the iPad, eReaders) has vastly changed the market we're used to, and does not necessarily mean that customers are still interested in notebooks the way they always were.

Markets change, get over it.

The market is clearly changing. I see more students at school with Mac's than PC's it is a refreshing change.

 

[dmula]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_0 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/532.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/4.0.5 Mobile/8A293 Safari/6531.22.7)

Cannibalization? iPad can cannibaliz MacBooks, iPods ... but a PC?

 

[alex.sebenski]

I definitely bought an iPad so I didn't have to buy a laptop for the portable larger display than my iPhone.
I still have a computer, but it's become a media server for all my iDevices and a Boxee client plugged into my TV.

I won't buy a laptop anytime soon because I bought my iPad. It was in my sights otherwise.

 

[tangentially]

They didn't ask the second question

They didn't ask the second question which is "How will having an iPad impact the timing and type of your next notebook purchase."

A lot of people may find that as they quit using their current notebook for entertainment, media and social media that it remains more than adequate for the computing activities that they still use it for.

 

[alent1234]

The market is clearly changing. I see more students at school with Mac's than PC's it is a refreshing change.

since mommy and daddy are paying why not whine for the most expensive?

 

[RawBert]

Because people like to say "cannibalization."
"Excuse me, do you have cannibalization?" "We need more cannibalization." "Where is the cannibalization? No cannibalization?"

 

[JAT]

he and Best Buy president Mike Vitelli have continued to confuse things with their follow-up comments.

Ah, found the important point. Love or hate the iPad, this is all that really is stimulating the discussion.

since mommy and daddy are paying why not whine for the most expensive?

But, he said he is seeing Mac laptops, not Sonys.

 

[wizard]

Two pages now and everyone is dodging the number one hardware issue.

That is right, people with different expectations than the early adopters really would like to have that USB port. This data highlights one very important thing, early adopters don't care about functionality as long as they get the flavor of something new. As it is the iPad is a minimalist machine that isn't going to have broad appeal in the face of the on coming competition. Supporting USB doesn't sound like much of an advantage but it is. Given the correct drivers it makes for an extremely flexible platform. I'm really hoping Apple wises up here and implements a USB port with at least some generic devices support.

In any event those stratospheric satisfaction numbers are likely to slide dramatically once people realize how much money is laid out for iPad and the little bit they get in return. I for one was actually hoping iPad could have effectively replaced my laptop, but that can't happen right now. The lack of RAM and ports (one USB would have done nicely) makes the thing useless for anything other than entertaining simple minds. Not that that is bad as I could use a little entertainment myself.

I suppose a few minutes from now I will get to enertain myself with early adopters telling me how great iPad is. To head off a few I allready know the devices good points fellas. What I'm trying to say is the satisfaction you guys are rolling in isn't likely to be shared by people wearing clear glasses. Me, myself & I have decided to wait this rev out and wait for rev two and the rest of the market to catch up.

Why? Because early adopters pay a heavy price, I know because I was one back in the day. We are talking Mac Plus here with a 68000 CPU and eventually an external HD. In between a number of other early adoptions. Old age has taught me the wisdom of two things. 1) Waiting for the market to stabilize is real smart. 2) Buying a computing device that doesn't do everything you need is stupid.

Most importantly a stabilized market will tell you which feature sets are most in demand as the sales will go to devices with those features. It is easy for Apple to win in a market where they have no competition, it is another thing when there are multiple alternatives really trying to innovate.

 

[TallManNY]

That is right, people with different expectations than the early adopters really would like to have that USB port. This data highlights one very important thing, early adopters don't care about functionality as long as they get the flavor of something new. As it is the iPad is a minimalist machine that isn't going to have broad appeal in the face of the on coming competition.

Will you revisit this quote this time next year when the iPad is outselling every other tablet (and probably selling comparable numbers to all tablets combined)? Or will that still not be "broad appeal" if you still don't want one?

Seriously, USB? USB is for data transfer and the iPad has N level wifi and bluetooth. Both of those are very good ways to transfer data. If need be the camera connection does give you a USB port and after that pretty much anything else is just a software fix to make it functional. So what is this need for USB?

I handed over my macbook to my Mom this week as I've barely used it since I got my iPad. I've got a home desktop and a recently upgraded PC (with SSD!) from work and that will be what I will use on vacations away from home (but then only if I think I'm going somewhere were there won't be a computer relatively handy (i.e., I won't bring it if I'm going to visit at a friend's house for a weekend)).

 

[iClique.com]

Apple's iPad is 'cannibalizing' the PC notebook industry

AGAIN with the cannibalizing?!?!?!?! Are 6th graders writing these articles? It's impossible for an iPad to cannibalize PC's in any manor!!! An iPad can only cannibalize Apple products. The word itself means eating it's own sales. If it's impacting sales of PC's then that's just means Apple is obliterating the competition.

BUY A DICTIONARY!!!

 

[*LTD*]

13% is still a big number, actually.

 

[mytdave]

...NPD's Stephen Baker has also written a blog post highlighting some results from the iPad owner survey such as what users are doing with the iPad (Internet browsing, email, and games), their likes (portability, easy Wi-Fi connections, e-reading, and apps), and their dislikes (lack of USB ports, printing, and multi-tasking).

Article Link: iPad's 'Cannibalization' of Notebook Computers Disputed

I guess people don't know that multi-tasking and wireless printing are addressed in iOS 4.2 and the dock connector does have a USB interface.

 

[Bilbo63]

back-Pedaling

It's obvious that at least some potential net book purchasers went to the iPad camp. How many remains to be determined.

I'd expect that the manager from Best Buy has a good idea how much his projected net book sales were down. How much that can be attributed to the iPad will doubt be debated.

Sounds more like damage control to downplay his original statements. (which were likely not far off the mark)

 

[pr5owner]

13% is still a big number, actually.

sure........ at bestbuy, but any computer litterate person wouldnt buy a computer from bestbuy, everything they carry is garbage, they have no high end models from ANY BRAND.

 

[mytdave]

game changer

iPad is a game changer. My bro did not intend to own an iPad, but when he won an iPad in a drawing it changed his household. Everyone wants to use the iPad.

Personally, I'm trying to figure out what my future tech strategy will be... I mean, it's not a replacement for a computer, but it comes darn close. Do I buy a laptop and an iPad? Buy a desktop and an iPad? Live with the computers I have now and buy just an iPad? Having used my bro's iPad for a few days, I find it addicting. It's also far more convenient than sitting down to a desktop or even a laptop. I'm going to wait for rev 2 that includes a camera, but then I'm taking the plunge.

Unfortunately for Apple, it will probably cannibalize a future laptop sale, but fortunately for them, it'll be an iPad purchase and not a 'wanna be pad' from a competitor. I still need to figure out my tech strategy however. Damn you Apple!

 

[*LTD*]

sure........ at bestbuy, but any computer literate person wouldnt buy a computer from bestbuy, everything they carry is garbage, they have no high end models from ANY BRAND.

LIke I said, 13% is still a big number.

Best Buy does big business in computers.