Pakistanis angry over detentions in Times Sq. case Monday, May 24, 2010
ISLAMABAD – Relatives of three men detained by Pakistan for alleged links to the suspect in the attempted Times Square bombing say the men are innocent.
They
AFP - Thursday, August 6TAIPEI (AFP) - - Taiwan's Beijing-friendly government on Wednesday denied boycotting an Australian film festival amid a row over the e
BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel suffered a double blow on Thursday as a senior party ally in east German
Minister seeks closure of anti-Berlusconi websites Wednesday, December 16, 2009
ROME (AFP) - – The Italian government moved Tuesday to close down Internet sites encouraging further violence against Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who
By ELAINE KURTENBACH,AP Business Writer AP - Wednesday, March 18SHANGHAI - Asia's stock market rally seemed to be running out of steam Wednesday, despite an
Edition:
U.S.
Africa
Arabic
Argentina
Brazil
Canada
China
France
Germany
India
Italy
Japan
Latin America
Mexico
Russia
Spain
United Kingdom
Home
Business
Business Home
Economy
Technology
Media
Small Business
Legal
Deals
Earnings
Social Pulse
Business Video
The Freeland File
Aerospace & Defense
Investing Simplified
Markets
Markets Home
U.S. Markets
European Markets
Asian Markets
Global Market Data
Indices
M&A
Stocks
Bonds
Currencies
Commodities
Futures
Funds
peHUB
World
World Home
U.S.
Brazil
China
Euro Zone
Japan
Mexico
Russia
India Insight
World Video
Reuters Investigates
Decoder
Politics
Politics Home
Election 2012
Campaign Polling
Supreme Court
Politics Video
Tech
Technology Home
MediaFile
Science
Tech Video
Tech Tonic
Social Pulse
Opinion
Opinion Home
Chrystia Freeland
John Lloyd
Felix Salmon
Jack Shafer
David Rohde
Nader Mousavizadeh
Lucy P. Marcus
Nicholas Wapshott
Bethany McLean
Anatole Kaletsky
Edward Hadas
Hugo Dixon
Ian Bremmer
Lawrence Summers
Susan Glasser
The Great Debate
Steven Brill
Reihan Salam
Frederick Kempe
Christopher Papagianis
Mark Leonard
Breakingviews
Equities
Credit
Private Equity
M&A
Macro & Markets
Politics
Breakingviews Video
Money
Money Home
Tax Break
Lipper Awards 2012
Global Investing
MuniLand
Unstructured Finance
Linda Stern
Mark Miller
John Wasik
James Saft
Analyst Research
Alerts
Watchlist
Portfolio
Stock Screener
Fund Screener
Personal Finance Video
Money Clip
Investing 201
Life
Health
Sports
Arts
Faithworld
Business Traveler
Entertainment
Oddly Enough
Lifestyle Video
Pictures
Pictures Home
Reuters Photographers
Full Focus
Video
Reuters TV
Reuters News
Article
Comments (2)
Editor's Choice
Vineyard robot will prune like a pro
A French engineer is offering wine-growers an efficient way to prune their vines without breaking their back - a robot designed to do it for them. Video
Companies won't be early adopters of Windows 8
In vulnerable Greece, mosquitoes bite back
Girls may not have riskier sex after HPV vaccination
Follow Reuters
Facebook
Twitter
RSS
YouTube
Read
Obama on attack in foreign policy debate, but Romney steady
3:17am EDT
Italian court ruling sends chill through science community
22 Oct 2012
Obama, Romney battle over foreign policy
22 Oct 2012
"Horses and bayonets" becomes latest debate catchphrase
1:56am EDT
Apple set to unwrap mini-iPad to take on Amazon, Google
22 Oct 2012
Discussed
176
Obama gets second chance in debate rematch with Romney
118
Obama talks Libya and Biden’s swimsuit on ”Daily Show”
90
As other polls show tight race, Gallup stands apart
Sponsored Links
Apple set to unwrap mini-iPad to take on Amazon, Google
Tweet
Share this
Email
Print
Related News
Mobile revolution, economy trip up tech giants
Fri, Oct 19 2012
Apple loses tablet copyright appeal against Samsung
Thu, Oct 18 2012
Amazon makes big Kindle push in U.S. schools
Wed, Oct 17 2012
Best Buy to sell its own tablet for $239-$259: source
Tue, Oct 16 2012
Apple sets Oct. 23 event, smaller iPad expected
Tue, Oct 16 2012
Analysis & Opinion
Google’s hardware ambitions proving costly
Apple and Samsung’s cone of silence
Related Topics
Investing Simplified »
Tech »
Media »
iPad »
Customers gather outside an Apple store before the release of iPhone 5 in Munich early September 21, 2012.
Credit: Reuters/Michael Dalder
By Poornima Gupta
SAN FRANCISCO |
Mon Oct 22, 2012 10:00pm EDT
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Apple Inc is expected to make its biggest product move on Tuesday since debuting the iPad two years ago, launching a smaller, cheaper tablet into a market staked out by Amazon.com Inc and Google Inc.
Apple hopes to beat back their charge onto its home turf of consumer electronics hardware, while safeguarding its lead in the larger 10-inch tablet space that even deep-pocketed rivals like Samsung Electronics have found tough to penetrate.
Amazon's Kindle and Google's Nexus 7 have grabbed a chunk of the lower end of the tablet market and proved demand for a pocket-sized slate exists, helping force Apple into a space it has avoided and at times derided, analysts say.
A smaller tablet would mark the first device to be added to Apple's compact portfolio under Chief Executive Tim Cook, who took over from co-founder Steve Jobs just before his death.
"Apple sensed early that they had a real winner with the iPad and that has proven to be correct," said Lars Albright, co-founder of mobile advertising startup SessionM and a former Apple ad executive.
"They have a large market share, and to protect that market share they have got to be innovative," he said.
Apple's invitation-only event, where it is expected to unveil the tablet, gets underway at 10 am PT (1700 GMT) in San Jose.
Wall Street analysts have said for months that Apple was planning a less expensive version of the iPad to take on cheaper competing devices, a move they say might hurt its margins, but prevent its rivals from dominating an increasingly important segment.
The chief rival is Amazon, which proved a 7-inch tablet at around $200 has consumer appeal. The Kindle Fire, released last year for $199, was one of the hottest-selling holiday gadgets. It pressured Amazon's margins but gave it potentially millions of new high-spending customers.
Amazon sold more than a million Kindles a week during December, paving the way for others like Google with its Nexus 7 to try and beat Apple in a market the company created.
The Internet retailer has now put its second-generation Kindle Fire HD in the market, which it says is the "best-selling product across all of Amazon worldwide", based on undisclosed U.S. sales figures and international preorders.
Google's Nexus 7 tablet, built by Asian manufacturer Asustek, quickly ran out of stock after its July launch.
All three companies will be vying to get their devices on shopping lists during the U.S. holiday season, which traditionally starts next month.
"It's going to be the go-to holiday gift," said Michael Yoshikami, founder of Destination Wealth Management, which owns Apple shares.
PRICE IS KEY
Apple now has just one 9.7-inch iPad, starting at $499. The previous version, or iPad 2, is available for $399.
Jobs famously derided the 7-inch screen, saying such a device should come with sandpaper so users can file down their fingers. But an internal email revealed during a patent trial showed he turned more favorable to the idea by early 2011.
Apple has sold over 84 million iPads so far, with the device accounting for 26 percent of Apple's fiscal third quarter revenue. Most Wall Street analysts expect Apple's new tablet to fall between 7 inches and 8 inches in size, saying its price will be crucial to its success.
The "starting sweet spot" for the tablet would be in the $249-$299 range, according to a survey of over a thousand consumers by Baird Equity Research.
"When asked what the most they would pay for a smaller iPad was, our respondents on average said that they would pay $242 for a 7-inch iPad and $268 for an 8-inch iPad," William Power, Baird Equity Research analyst, said.
Any erosion in Apple's industry leading margins also hinges on the price tag. It earned gross margins of 23 percent to 32 percent on U.S. iPad sales between October 2010 and the end of March 2012, according to a July court filing by Apple.
Rivals haven't fared as well. Amazon's first Kindle Fire just about breaks even, according to IHS iSuppli estimates, and Google has said its Nexus 7 is being sold at cost.
Topeka Capital's Brian White argued a smaller tablet could overtake sales of the iPad in a few years. He is forecasting sales of 5 million to 7 million in the December quarter.
Apple shares rose 4 percent on Monday, buoying the benchmark S&P 500 index. While the stock is up 56 percent this year, it is currently down 10 percent from its record high of $705 on September 21, struck by concerns about iPhone-supply disruption at contract manufacturer, Foxconn Technology. Sharp criticism about errors in its Maps service also hurt.
"Apple's stock is up a ton and it is only logical that it will take a breather after a while," Yoshikami said. "I don't think there is any fundamental issue beyond that."
(Additional reporting by Edwin Chan; Editing by Richard Pullin)
Investing Simplified
Tech
Media
iPad
Related Quotes and News
Company
Price
Related News
Tweet this
Link this
Share this
Digg this
Email
Reprints
We welcome comments that advance the story through relevant opinion, anecdotes, links and data. If you see a comment that you believe is irrelevant or inappropriate, you can flag it to our editors by using the report abuse links. Views expressed in the comments do not represent those of Reuters. For more information on our comment policy, see http://blogs.reuters.com/fulldisclosure/2010/09/27/toward-a-more-thoughtful-conversation-on-stories/
Comments (2)
tsuyoshior wrote:
Edition:
U.S.
Africa
Arabic
Argentina
Brazil
Canada
China
France
Germany
India
Italy
Japan
Latin America
Mexico
Russia
Spain
United Kingdom
Back to top
Reuters.com
Business
Markets
World
Politics
Technology
Opinion
Money
Pictures
Videos
Site Index
Legal
Bankruptcy Law
California Legal
New York Legal
Securities Law
Support & Contact
Support
Corrections
Connect with Reuters
Twitter
Facebook
LinkedIn
RSS
Podcast
Newsletters
Mobile
About
Privacy Policy
Terms of Use
AdChoices
Copyright
Our Flagship financial information platform incorporating Reuters Insider
An ultra-low latency infrastructure for electronic trading and data distribution
A connected approach to governance, risk and compliance
Our next generation legal research platform
Our global tax workstation
Thomsonreuters.com
About Thomson Reuters
Investor Relations
Careers
Contact Us
Thomson Reuters is the world's largest international multimedia news agency, providing investing news, world news, business news, technology news, headline news, small business news, news alerts, personal finance, stock market, and mutual funds information available on Reuters.com, video, mobile, and interactive television platforms. Thomson Reuters journalists are subject to an Editorial Handbook which requires fair presentation and disclosure of relevant interests.
NYSE and AMEX quotes delayed by at least 20 minutes. Nasdaq delayed by at least 15 minutes. For a complete list of exchanges and delays, please click here.