Apple almost has got to come out with some sort of press release on this situation. I swear by the weekend ship dates on the online store are going to be 5-6 weeks.
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Looks like Apple was just trying to beat it's competition
- Thread starter Stealthipad
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SO Apple got GREEDY and got us to all order now when they knew they did not have NEAR the stock to cover their orders.
For weeks the interwebs were full of armchair technocritics tellings us why this would be just a minor upgrade and 'iPad 3' would be the one to want. It certainly is not Apple's fault demand was sky-high.
'Greedy' 'Got us all to order'?
This is a technology device, not food or shelter - no one is making you order it.
Relax, or head to BestBuy and pickup a Xoom, they have plenty of stock...
I was #3 in a line and spent time chatting with the first 15 people.
Out of those 15, 12 had at least one original iPad, some had multiples.
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So wait a month, wander into any store and get the iPad you want.
Why are people so impatient nowadays?
So wait a month, wander into any store and get the iPad you want.
Why are people so impatient nowadays?
+1
I find this whole thing hilarious. People need to get a perspective. I remember trying to get an iPhone 4 and going to the store day after day with no luck. I don't remember being this panicked though. This isn't the first time demand has exceeded supply.
SO the "BIG APPLE LIE" begins. Many are already getting new "delayed" shipping dates for their iPad 2. Even if your order was just 6 minutes after they started taking orders
SO the "BIG APPLE LIE" begins. Many are already getting new "delayed" shipping dates for their iPad 2. Even if your order was just 6 minutes after they started taking orders
This is so hilariously deluded. You try shipping a million units of anything with growing demand and only a few months to deliver them. Come back and tell me your excuses.
During the iPad 2 release presentation, there was a slide with a quote from a Samsung VP...
"As you heard, our sell-in was quite aggressive around two million. In terms of sell-out, we believe it was quite small."
I only use this quote to illustrate my point (because there is some debate to the accuracy of the quote) which is that any time you launch a new product, even if you know that it will be a hit, you never overload your stock.
What if Apple built 2 million units & had them all sitting in a warehouse ready to go? What could go wrong there? Well...
The list goes on. If, instead, they manufacture 250k-500k units, they can deliver to the early adopters while making any necessary tweaks to the production process, including ramping it up to 200% to meet demand.
Take a lesson in business risk planning. Would you rather have the problem of eating a ton of defective units because you wanted to be able to meet 100% of initial demand, or would you rather have to have your PR guy work overtime trying to explain to your customers why it will be worth the wait?
"As you heard, our sell-in was quite aggressive around two million. In terms of sell-out, we believe it was quite small."
I only use this quote to illustrate my point (because there is some debate to the accuracy of the quote) which is that any time you launch a new product, even if you know that it will be a hit, you never overload your stock.
What if Apple built 2 million units & had them all sitting in a warehouse ready to go? What could go wrong there? Well...
- If sales do not meet expectations, they have to eat 2 million iPads.
- If a design flaw is found, they have to eat 2 million iPads.
- If there are glue issues, they have to eat 2 million iPads.
- If there is light bleed, they have to eat 2 million iPads.
- If there is a death grip antenna issue, they have to eat 2 million iPads.
The list goes on. If, instead, they manufacture 250k-500k units, they can deliver to the early adopters while making any necessary tweaks to the production process, including ramping it up to 200% to meet demand.
Take a lesson in business risk planning. Would you rather have the problem of eating a ton of defective units because you wanted to be able to meet 100% of initial demand, or would you rather have to have your PR guy work overtime trying to explain to your customers why it will be worth the wait?
I think there is no question they rushed the release to minimize Honeycomb impact.
It sucks a bit for the consumers, but I think it was a smart move by Apple from a marketing perspective.
It sucks a bit for the consumers, but I think it was a smart move by Apple from a marketing perspective.
The same shortages happened with the first iPad. With high demand from the public and resellers, they can't keep up.
Alot of people are upset about not getting theirs (I'm one of the lucky ones who did). Apple will catch up and they were right to come out now and put their foot on the neck of Motorola, Samsung and all "Coming Soon" devices.
Apple still would have done as well had it been released in April.
Alot of people are upset about not getting theirs (I'm one of the lucky ones who did). Apple will catch up and they were right to come out now and put their foot on the neck of Motorola, Samsung and all "Coming Soon" devices.
Apple still would have done as well had it been released in April.
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I don't understand that argument. They've sold hundreds of thousands of units to hundreds of thousands now happy customers (equating to millions in profits). How is that rushing it?
Dorkington said:
I don't understand that argument. They've sold hundreds of thousands of units to hundreds of thousands now happy customers (equating to millions in profits). How is that rushing it?
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Double post, courtesy of AT&T's slow network.
Double post, courtesy of AT&T's slow network.
So let me get the straight! You think it is wise of Apple to lie to it's customers about when the iPad would be delivered. The deliberately deceive it's loyal customers with dates that they KNEW would be impossible to keep? This was no error as Apple knows how many units they have in their inventory.
Apple simply lied to get you to order from them and not be tempted by one of the other manufacturers who ARE actually delivering their product!
Dude put down the pipe.
There is no inventory system on the planet that could handle the kind of demand that Apple got when they unleashed online orders (even at 4am!)
I am not talking about handling orders (that is easy), I am talking about live updating of inventory on a per order basis. So basically you are expecting them to update the order page every 10 seconds to say how many are left in stock? They basically opened up sales, took a bunch of orders in for a few hours, then when they saw they were past the first "batch" of available iPads for sale, they updated the page to say 2-3 weeks or whatever. This is because they are only doing estimations on how long it will take for orders to ship, there are way too many variables (a lot of which is beyond Apple's control) which make it impossible for them to make any guarantees.
Plus Apple has always had the policy that they do not release unofficial sales numbers, and having a live counter of how much are in stock would basically be considered an inaccurate number and so it would be an unofficial sales number on an official Apple website. Instead of having people complaining about the "estimated ship date" being wrong, you would have people complaining about the "in stock X left" number being wrong and not getting one as "promised" (even though Apple never promises anything about the time it will ship).
TLDR: Stop whining, if you have to wait that sucks, and there are plenty of other people in the same boat, but to start spouting conspiracy theories and crying about how unfair it is, that is just pointless and unproductive. You come off as a troll and not at all helpful for people who are working hard to find an iPad to buy. There are always people in a worse situation than you, stop being so entitled.
What other manufacturers? Last time I checked, the only one shipping is Mortorola.
I do not think Apple was originally going to deliver the iPad 2 for another month or so but they could not resist when they saw to the Zoom and other new tablets hitting the market before them! We were ALL surprised that the iPad 2 delivery date came with out a warning.
SO Apple got GREEDY and got us to all order now when they knew they did not have NEAR the stock to cover their orders.
Why should we not be surprised . . . . because they have done this in the past!
Your right but it isn't greed it is business smarts. I am sure Apple intended an early April launch with more iPad 2's on hand but yes, when Honeycomb tablets, WebOS, and RIM started making noise and the media began paying attention they correctly jumped into the fray and showed they had something better. While we knock Apple for having "low stock" at launch the reality is they likely made and sold more iPad 2's already than ALL of the Tabs and Xooms sold combined to date. It is all perspective but it also adds up to why Apple is Fortune's most admired company in the world for the 4th year running.
Much like the old quip that "it's a shame that all the people who really know how to run the country are too busy driving cabs and cutting hair," it appears that the people who know what's best for Apple are too busy posting conspiracy-laden drivel on these forums.
The release period has been a bit different than previous launches for Apple. I'm not discounting the success of the launch, by any stretch. Apple has a winner on their hands.
But with no pre-ordering, no regular stock replenishment, and what looks like a back log in production... to me it appears they didn't have time to do their normal production ramp up as they have in previous launches. I have a feeling they were originally planning to launch a couple weeks later.
Obviously this is just speculation, and opinion, based on how they have previously done things. I could very well be wrong, and I'm ok with that.
Also, understand, I'm not upset about it, I'm just noting it seems a bit rushed, that's all.
I feel that Honeycomb/ Motorola rushed their releases and minimized their own impact.
I do not think Apple was originally going to deliver the iPad 2 for another month or so but they could not resist when they saw to the Zoom and other new tablets hitting the market before them! We were ALL surprised that the iPad 2 delivery date came with out a warning.
SO Apple got GREEDY and got us to all order now when they knew they did not have NEAR the stock to cover their orders.
Why should we not be surprised . . . . because they have done this in the past!
I agree!!!!!! And of course it's the rich that all get them first. And those capitalizing oinkers that ship them off to europe. What about the rest of us stuck in the middle??? We need to rise up against the oppression of the working class!!!!
you with me op???? Ya WITH ME?????Sent from my iPad 2
I do not think Apple was originally going to deliver the iPad 2 for another month or so but they could not resist when they saw to the Zoom and other new tablets hitting the market before them! We were ALL surprised that the iPad 2 delivery date came with out a warning.
SO Apple got GREEDY and got us to all order now when they knew they did not have NEAR the stock to cover their orders.
Why should we not be surprised . . . . because they have done this in the past!
All of these ridiculous conspiracy theories are reply getting comical. It's amazing that people actually believe this nonsense.
When did they lie? At worst they released a product without having enough produced to meet initial demand. There is nothing inherently wrong with that, it sucks for potential buyers who want products on release, but thats about it.
it's all about marketing hype. It the Apple-loving press reports that the Ipad 2 is sold out everywhere, lines at Apple stores, and delayed shipments, it makes people wonder if they should want one too. Hell I bought an ipad 2 on launch day because of it. i'm the only one of my friends with an ipad 2. the rest either have ipad 1 or iphones.
Apple is more about marketing and press-spin then they are about their devices (and DEFINITELY the mac platform and pro software) these days.
I have an ipad 2 which I'm debating returning. Looks cool, feels cool.. backlight bleeding.. not sure if I'll actually use it. I'm hoping to hear more about REAL multitasking (not jailbroken) in iOS 5. I'm stunned this hasn't been fully addressed by Apple yet.
As a creative, running a business, it's imperative to be able to have 2+ apps open at once, simultaneously. Reviewing shots and videos while taking notes ON the device should be easy as pie. Not from Apple's slice of pie obviously. I'll be checking out Xoom today, or buying a moleskine case/pad if I keep this device. This is only my view of it, which I'm entitled to. Other Apple fans or users may feel differently, and I respect that. more power to you.
So far disappointed but willing to keep investigating...