Apple needs to hurry a less expensive iTablet
A new study says that Apple needs to lower its price expectations for its tablet computer, if indeed it exists, and had better think about getting it to market sooner than later.
Even though no one is really sure what the fabled Apple iTablet looks like or what it really does, a lot of industry mavens seem willing to give advice about it. The latest is the Retrevo shopping Web site, which bills itself as “the ultimate electronics marketplace” and it has said that the Apple tablet needs to be priced around $600 (lower than most estimates) and needs to get to market quickly (before Christmas?) in order to succeed, according to an eWeek article.
Retrevo came up with its advice by polling its readers, asking primarily who among them would purchase an iTablet and how much they would be willing to pay for one. Based on the results of that informal survey, Retrevo thinks that Apple should keep the price of the device around $600 in order to hit the sweet spot. They found that 68 percent of current Mac users would be willing to pay that amount or more, while only 36 percent of current PC users would be willing to do so.
On the timing issue, Retrevo found that some 59 percent of iPhone users surveyed said that they already have purchased or were planning to buy a netbook of some sort during the coming year, indicating that the longer Apple waits, the more sales they will lose. Retrevo concluded, “If Apple wants to grab a larger market and get in on the netbook craze, it will need to attract PC owners to generate significant sales. To convert PC owners to Apple owners, Apple needs to consider a [close to] $600 price point for the tablet, and they should not delay bringing it to market.”
Apple has undoubtedly done a lot of market research on these very questions. Most estimates place the Cupertino opinion of pricing closer to $800 than $600. In the past, Apple has proven very astute at figuring out what the market would bear for such products. As for timing, it is unlikely that Steve Jobs will bring an iTablet to market before its time, although sooner is obviously better than too late.
Related Posts:
