[bootlegga]

$1:

There have been a bunch of theories about why Apple decided to put a $329 price tag on the iPad Mini when well-reviewed competitive tablets from Amazon and Google are priced at $199. (In the accompanying video, TechCrunch East Coast editor John Biggs and I discuss Tuesday's Apple event which he says lacked the shock and awe of previous product announcements.)

The theories include:

- Because Apple can charge this much--its fans are either so brainwashed or so locked-in to Apple's ecosystem that they'll pay anything

- Because Apple wants to protect its extraordinarily high profit margin

- Because Apple's "mini" is better than the Google and Amazon tablets

All of those theories probably factored into the decision.

And now there's a new report out of Asia that adds a fourth theory, one that also makes sense: Apple's iPad mini production, at least for the time-being, is supply-constrained.

According to Siu Han and Alex Wolfgram at DigiTimes, Apple can't get enough of the screens for the new iPad mini, and the ones it can get are expensive:

The US $329 price tag for Apple's iPad mini is largely due to low yield rates for the device's GF2 (DITO film) touch screen technology, according to industry sources.

The sources said the DITO film sensor is having mass production issues, which has been a big contributor to why the device is approximately 40-50% more expensive compared to other 7-inch tablets that have OGS or G/G structures.

The sources said that GF2 touch screen modules are only about roughly US$5 cheaper than G/G ones for the 9.7-inch iPad models.

So, in other words, rather than stimulate absolutely massive demand for the new tablet by pricing it competitively, Apple is actually trying to control demand (and protect its profit margin) by pricing it higher.

Apple did this with the original iPhone, you will recall--pricing it at a positively usurious price in the early going, and then rapidly cutting that price when its supply chain and carrier networks ramped up. And the strategy certainly paid off then.

The circumstances now are very different, though: Apple's competitors are already in market with high-quality much lower-priced tablets. So Apple does run the risk that it will alienate some potential customers, cannibalize sales of the bigger iPads, and lose some gound in the platform market-share war.

http://ca.finance.yahoo.com/blogs/daily ... 30978.html

[saturn_656]

$1:

- Because Apple wants to protect its extraordinarily high profit margin

This one.

[commanderkai]

saturn_656 saturn_656:

$1:

- Because Apple wants to protect its extraordinarily high profit margin

This one.

$1:

- Because Apple can charge this much--its fans are either so brainwashed or so locked-in to Apple's ecosystem that they'll pay anything

This too.

[Tricks]

$1:

Why Apple decided to overcharge for everything they sell

Fixed.

[desertdude]

Misleading headline. Apple overcharges for everything.

[CDN_PATRIOT]

This one.

bootlegga bootlegga:

Because Apple can charge this much--its fans are either so brainwashed or so locked-in to Apple's ecosystem that they'll pay anything

The reason being that people must certainly be brainwashed or coerced to spend hours and/or days in line for an Apple product. Calm the hell down people!

-J.

[desertdude]

[Lemmy]

Just an observation, but why is it that the most rabid, business-first conservatives hate Apple so much? I thought you guys were wet for successful corporations?

[PluggyRug]

Lemmy Lemmy:

Just an observation, but why is it that the most rabid, business-first conservatives hate Apple so much? I thought you guys were wet for successful corporations?

When I ran my computer business I had dealings with Apple.

The largest bunch of jumped-up-never-come-downs you would never wish to meet.

They wanted my company to put up $50,000 and promise not to service any other brand of system. Just for the dubious right to service their Mac's, which would have been approx' 1% of my operation. Later they dropped their ridiculous demands, but it was too little to late.

[Lemmy]

PluggyRug PluggyRug:

When I ran my computer business I had dealings with Apple.

The largest bunch of jumped-up-never-come-downs you would never wish to meet.

They wanted my company to put up $50,000 and promise not to service any other brand of system. Just for the dubious right to service their Mac's, which would have been approx' 1% of my operation. Later they dropped their ridiculous demands, but it was too little to late.

Devil's Advocate: And how, since then, has your business fared compared to Apple? Would you concede that Apple has been a more successful business than yours? Survival of the fittest. Isn't that how the business world's supposed to work? I'm sure I've heard conservatives say that before. So you cheer for a winner in the free-market as long as they aren't winning against you?

[CDN_PATRIOT]

Lemmy Lemmy:

Just an observation, but why is it that the most rabid, business-first conservatives hate Apple so much? I thought you guys were wet for successful corporations?

I don't hate Apple. I just don't think any product is worth waiting in line for days over, no matter who makes it. Over-hyped B.S. is all.

-J.

[Lemmy]

CDN_PATRIOT CDN_PATRIOT:

I don't hate Apple. I just don't think any product is worth waiting in line for days over, no matter who makes it. Over-hyped B.S. is all.

I agree. So your beef is with consumers (or maybe consumerism), not with Apple? You're not criticizing Apple for having effective marketing, are you? I mean, it's not something to hold against them that consumers like their wares, is it? Isn't that we champion in business? Providing products/services that consumers want (err, would line up for) I'd be curious to hear OTI's opinion, given his expertise in marketing.

[Gunnair]

CDN_PATRIOT CDN_PATRIOT:

Lemmy Lemmy:

Just an observation, but why is it that the most rabid, business-first conservatives hate Apple so much? I thought you guys were wet for successful corporations?

I don't hate Apple. I just don't think any product is worth waiting in line for days over, no matter who makes it. Over-hyped B.S. is all.

-J.

Frankly it's paying for quality. I've had several MP3 players - the Ipod is by far the best.

Yep, I could by a Dodge Neon but if I can afford it, I'll opt for the Toyota Camry any day.

One can make similar arguments for the iphone and ipad. There are good non-Apple products out there but overall, I wouldn't trade my Apple products for them at this time because of both the quality and the app store.

As for the guys and gals that upgrade each time Apple puts out an upgrade - well, you can't fix stupid in the consumer but you can sure as hell admire a company that has created that kind of following.

[herbie]

PluggyRug they still want a minimum sales amount to be a dealer. But guess what, many of the large wholesalers want that, or a big yearly fee just to access their PC parts and supplies too.
Still doing that biz, but now 90% of supplies come from hungry small outfits. They call almost daily - got a container of such and such coming Thursday, want in for this price?
Only have two old fashioned wholesale suppliers left.
Apple still says buy it for $X and you sell for $Y.

But I still relish coming home to my Macs and iPads after dealing with endless problems all day with other shit. I carry 7" Android pads for $150. If anyone thinks they're even half an iPad, they're nuts.
Same with chossing a $499 EEE NetTop over a $599 Mac Mini. You're saving $100 because you're cheap.

[Caelon]

I have an old Ipod 80 Gig. You can get the classic now at 160 Gig, but i haven't used half the room on the old 80 so no incentive to change. What I have trouble with is the new versions at 16 Gig (not enough memory) are almost as much as I paid for the 80 several years ago. As they have minaturized, the screen isn't any bigger than the old one so you pay more for less. I have to give Apple credit as the old one has bounced around in the faring pocket of the bike for quite a few years and has not died yet. It would be deemed stress testing of the product by most users. So good marks for durability as an MP3 player and poor marks for going backwards in memory capacity.