Investors are worried that Apple’s tablet will sell far fewer units in 2015, compared to previous years (pre-iPhone 6)

Jan 5, 2015 10:57 GMT  ·  By

Apple’s first phablet is eating away at the market share of other iDevices, particularly the iPad, according to Trefis analysts who expressed their concerns in a research note handed to investors. Apple probably doesn’t care much, though.

A “one-device-fits-all proposition,” the iPhone 6 Plus is seen as the main reason why Apple’s iPad no longer sells as it used to. The device is cannibalizing its bigger siblings, thanks to the larger display and underlying horsepower. Trefis says the iPad will “come under further pressure going into 2015,” with the iPad mini getting cannibalized the most by the super-sized smartphone.

Profit margins likely to remain intact

In his biography of Steve Jobs, Walter Isaacson cites the late Apple co-founder as saying that “If you don't cannibalize yourself, someone else will,” something he strongly believed in. That conviction remains true at Apple to this day.

Trefis reveals that the iPhone 6 Plus has considerably thicker margins than other iDevices, and that “should more than make up for potentially lost sales of the iPad Mini.” According to the investment bank, Apple rakes in gross profit of more than $600 (€502) per phone. By comparison, the profit margin of the iPad mini is just $100 (€84).

iPad Pro rumors

Citing Trefis and their projections for Apple’s 2015, TheStreet forgets to factor in the rumored iPad Pro, also a larger-something spawned by an existing product category.

Going by the touted specs – 13-inch display, A9 processor, quadruple speakers, etc. – and the Enterprise’s demand for such a product, Apple has one less reason to worry about cannibalization.

In fact, as an investor or a market watcher, all you need to do is look at their quarterly earnings. Because, you know, that’s basically all that matters in this line of business.