Saturday, October 12, 2024
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TrendForce predicts Apple iPad sales to dip 2% year-over-year (but they’re wrong)

According to a new report from TrendForce, global tablet shipments are expected to decline 4.3% year-over-year in 2018 to 145.5 million units, as the shipments of entry-level devices are on pace to grow weaker due to the rise of smart speakers and unfavorable currency exchange rates.

Apple, the leading tablet maker, revealed its new 11-inch and 12.9-inch iPad Pro models ahead of the coming holiday sales in Europe and the U.S. However, its launch not long after new iPhones and the premium price tags, 25% higher than its ancestors, may prevent the new iPad Pro series from achieving mass market success, according to TrendForce. As the result, TrendForce expects the iPad shipment to fall by 2% year-over-year, recording 43 million units for 2018.



However, the Sellers Research Group (that’s me) begs to differ. Despite the higher prices, I predict that Apple’s tablet sales will be up 5% year-over-year. 

“With the launch of new devices in the coming era of 5G, the tablet category will still help the brands build a strategic future, retaining their customer bases and becoming more influential in the global Internet of Things network,” says Kou-Han Tseng, TrendForce notebook analyst. “Therefore, major brands will not give up their tablet product lines, even at the expense of downsizing their entry-level product ranges.”

Dennis Sellers
the authorDennis Sellers
Dennis Sellers is the editor/publisher of Apple World Today. He’s been an “Apple journalist” since 1995 (starting with the first big Apple news site, MacCentral). He loves to read, run, play sports, and watch movies.