14 DAY TRIAL // A Chinese media outlet is out with some interesting figures on Apple’s forecasted iPad sales for 2013, indicating that NPD Group’s February estimates were spot-on. Moreover, Apple is planning to unleash the iPad 5 and the iPad mini 2 in Q3, the report says.
Japan’s Macotakara cites China’s cnYES.com as saying that Apple has cut some of the orders for its larger iPads in anticipation of greater sales of the iPad mini.
The story corroborates a February report from NPD Group which dished out similar (if not identical) numbers, along with claims that Apple was gearing up to release its next generation of tablet computers.
The launch of the iPad 5 and iPad mini 2 will occur in the third quarter of this year, according to the Chinese publication.
Hardware-wise, the iPad 5 is expected to boast an all-new design, whereas the second-generation iPad mini will reportedly employ a Retina display.
The news certainly isn’t breaking, as such rumors have been circulating in the media for months now.
If anything, the downgraded shipment estimates (from 100 million to 88 million) reported by the Chinese newspaper act as stronger indication that Apple will capitalize on the hype surrounding the iPad mini.
Not only will the iPad mini 2 get its much deserved Retina display this year, but the fifth-generation (full-size) iPad will reportedly employ a design akin to that of its smaller sibling.
The design of the 8-inch iPad mini is the main reason why the tablet has actually started to eat away at the share of its bigger counterparts, the 10-inch iPads.
Apple will not phase out its full-size tablets because of this. Instead, the company is rumored to apply the same thin-bezel enclosure for a smaller form factor, while keeping the 9.7-inch screen size intact.