After months of anticipation, rumors and speculation, Apple officially unveiled the third generation iPad last week. Simply called “The New iPad,†the latest version of the Cupertino, California-based company’s top-selling tablet hit shelves today [March 16] but, to no surprise, the pre-order demand was so high that it caused a two to three week delivery delay. The must-have frenzy surrounding Apple products is nothing new. For the last decade, Apple aficionados and die-hard fans alike have gone as far as to camp outside of retail stores days in advance just to be the first to get their hands on the latest gadget. It’s this sort of incessant fanfare that keeps Apple making money hand over fist.
In 2010, the consumer electronics provider became the world’s most valuable technology company, snatching the coveted title from Microsoft, who dominated computer use for close to 20 years. Last year, Apple celebrated its highest quarterly revenue and earnings ever (October 2011-December 2011), with $46.3 billion in revenue and a record quarterly net profit of $13.6 billion. With the popularity and sales of smart phones, hand-held devices and digital music at an all time high, and analysts forecasting nearly 200 million iPhones and iPads to be sold this year, it’s shaping up to be another banner year for the retailer. What’s more, earlier this month, it was announced that Apple plans to build a $304 million campus in Austin, Texas, adding 3,600 jobs over the next decade and doubling its workforce in the city.
With the release of the New iPad on the minds of every tech junkie around the world, and launch day sales expected to top one million units sold, BlackEnterprise.com Decodes the sales figures for Apple’s major product launches and upgrades over the last decade. –Shydel James
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THE RETURN OF THE MAC
Long before it became renowned for its game-changing music player, slick mobile phone and awe-worthy tablet, Apple was simply a good company that made great computers. Although they continue to be a fixture on college campuses and in coffee shops, Mac computer sales make up only 20% of the company’s current revenue. But back in 2006, when IOS-driven devices were nothing more than a line item on Apple’s wish list, the MacBook (along with the iPod) reigned supreme as the company’s most lucrative product.
The MacBook became an instant hit when it was first released on May 16, 2006, replacing the iBook and the PowerBook G4. It became Apple’s first consumer notebook to use Intel processors, which provided lower power consumption, longer battery life and allowed Mac users to run Windows without using a virtual PC. It was responsible for 40% of Apple’s revenue stream that year.
In 2008, the MacBook received an aluminum makeover and was rebranded as the MacBook Pro. The more upscale version of the consumer-focused notebook was available in three sizes (13-, 15-, and 17-inch), and featured illuminated keyboards and higher resolutions. Last October, Apple CEO Tim Cook announced that the MacBook Pro and the iMac (Apple’s desktop computer option) were the bestselling notebook and desktop in the U.S., growing 23% over the previous year and pushing 60 million Mac users worldwide. Despite its successful five year run, on July 20, 2011, Apple sent the iconic white MacBook packing, discontinuing it to make room for its super-svelte successor, the MacBook Air.
Heralded as a “the world’s thinnest notebook,†the MacBook Air became an instant hit when the original 13-inch model debuted on January 29, 2008, flying off shelves and selling out in stores in New York City, Chicago, San Francisco and Los Angeles. Its mere three-pound weight and near-paper-thin size made it the best choice for people looking for a lighter, more portable alternative to the hefty MacBook Pro. Today, the latest generation, which comes in an affordable $999 11-inch model, boasts a multi-touch trackpad, enhanced Bluetooth and WiFi technology, a FaceTime
HD camera, all-flash storage and “instant-on†technology, providing lightening quick speed and weeks of standby time. The “thinnovation†continued to dominate tech news headlines and shatter records during the 2011 holiday quarter when Apple moved approximately 1.2 million units. Recently, there has been chatter of a new 15-inch addition to the MacBook Air family coming this April.Click here to continue reading…
A DIGITAL MUSIC REVOLUTION
Once upon a time, people were forced to carry clunky Discmans and schlep their favorite CDs around with them just to enjoy their favorite songs. But all of that changed on October 23, 2001, when Apple revolutionized the digital music market with the launch of the iPod. Described by then-CEO Steve Jobs as “1,000 songs in your pocket,†the sleek music player changed the way we listened to music forever. Its compact design was less bulky, and more attractive and user friendly than competing digital players already on the market. Initial sales, however, were slow.
With a steep $400 price tag, only 10 gigabytes of hard drive space and compatibility exclusive with Mac computers, Apple managed to sell 376,000 iPods its first year out. But by the time it introduced the fifth-generation iPod in 2005–equipped with a color screen, video playback, cheaper price and more space ($299 for 30 gigabytes)–sales were through the roof with 6.5 million iPods sold during the fourth quarter of that year alone.
Over the years, many variations of the iconic music player have sprung up: iPod mini, iPod Nano, iPod Shuffle, and the iPod Touch, which became the first touch screen-based music player in 2007 with a 3.5-inch screen and 16 gigabytes of storage space. Eventually, automobile makers such as BMW, Volvo and Toyota began to give music lovers “the hook-up†when they started including iPod integration kits in their cars.
iPod sales peaked in 2008 with 54.8 million units sold, and although they’ve been on a steady decline ever since, it still remains the No. 1 selling music player in the world with 70% of the market on lock and over 300 million units sold to date.
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REACH OUT AND TOUCH [SCREEN] SOMEONE
Propelled by a consumer demand to have a convergence of features on one device, Steve Jobs and his design team went into the lab for two-and-a-half years and spent $150 million to come up with the first generation iPhone, which became available for purchase in the U.S. on June 29, 2007.
Tech geeks littered the sidewalk outside of Apple’s New York City flagship store to get their hands on the groundbreaking $599 device, which Time
magazine named the invention of the year and bloggers dubbed the “Jesus Phone.†The wisest smartphone on the market came loaded with capabilities and features unmatched by any other mobile phone available. It had the ability to download music directly from iTunes, held about 1,500 songs on 8 gigabytes of space, featured a multi-touch interface, a 2.0 megapixel camera, an ambient light sensor that adjusted screen brightness based on need and web-surfing capabilities; albeit on AT&T’s shoddy, much-complained about EDGE network. But even the biggest gripes (and that jaw-dropping price tag) couldn’t keep the revelation in mobile technology from selling like hot cakes. Apple sold one million iPhones in 74 days, a milestone it took the iPod two years to achieve.By the time Apple discontinued the original iPhone on July 11, 2008 with 6.1 million units sold–making room for the second generation, which sold a staggering 6.9 million units during the first quarter of its availability–the company reported its best quarterly revenue (at the time) surpassing $10 billion. But that was just a mere bag of shells compared to what was in store when the latest iPhone dropped on October 14, 2011.
Just eight months after Apple released the iPhone 4, it put out another winner when the fifth-generation iPhone 4S became the most successful product launch in the company’s history, smashing previous sales records with 4 million units sold in one weekend. The top-selling mobile phone of the year and one of the best-selling electronic devices of all time, contributed $24 billion to Apple’s first quarter sales. Currently available in more than 70 countries, the refreshed model included Siri voice recognition, the FaceTime video calling software, iCloud capabilities, and an 8-megapixel camera for $199.
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APPLE iPADS ITS POCKETS
Steve Jobs put the Internet in the palm of our hands when he unveiled the “unbelievably great†iPad on January 27, 2010, plugging the gap between laptops and smartphones. The 9.7-inch crystal screen display made the $499, 16-gigabyte device perfect for browsing the web, reading eBooks, watching movies and playing games. The Wi-Fi and 3G models of the iPad were let loose in April 2010, quickly becoming the fastest selling device ever with 3 million units sold within 80 days of its release, and eventually going on to move 4.5 million units per quarter. The second-generation iPad rolled out on March 11, 2011 33% thinner, 15% lighter and with a much faster CPU than its predecessor. The iPad 2 also came equipped with a front and rear camera for FaceTime video conferencing and moved 43 million units last year.
Early buzz for the third-generation iPad, which went on sale in 10 countries today, is overwhelmingly positive. Apple’s newest tablet is poised to break records with a projected 66 million units to be sold for 2012. The major additions are a higher resolution display, 4G wireless connectivity, longer battery life and a camera comparable with the iPhone 4S. Accounting for nearly 75% of worldwide media tablet sales last year, Apple is projected to rule the tablet market through 2015, carrying on its tradition of one-upping itself all while staying ahead of the competition.