Apple’s iPad sales grew a whopping 34% in Q2 despite intense economic hardship related to prolonged COVID-19 lockdowns, consumer and commercial customers went on a tablet buying spree to support work/learn-from-home initiatives, Strategy Analytics reports.
The supply chain almost fully recovered by April/May, which contributed to a 17% year-on-year increase in tablet shipments in Q2 2020, the Strategy Analytics report shows. Back-to-school demand could further boost the tablet market in the fall and looking long-term, tablet sales could see an extended resurgence due to lower price points if remote work and school options remain post-pandemic.
Eric Smith, Director – Connected Computing said in a statement, “As COVID-19 is still uncontained in some of the largest markets in the world and research shows certain workers and companies are getting used to remote work, it’s safe to say this won’t be a temporary change in demand. Tablets have evolved from the simple entertainment slate of the boom years into devices more capable of handling work and school tasks, which has broadened the choices consumers and commercial clients face when upgrading or buying new devices for the new normal.”
Chirag Upadhyay, Senior Research Analyst added, “New products played an important part in this quarter’s tablet success as well. Apple’s newest iPad Pro models sold very well as consumers needed devices with keyboards to get work done at home.”
The full report from Strategy Analytics’ Connected Computing Devices (CCD) service, Preliminary Global Tablet Shipments and Market Share: Q2 2020 Results can be found here: https://www.strategyanalytics.com/access-services/devices/tablets-and-pcs/connected-computing-devices/market-data/report-detail/preliminary-global-tablet-shipments-and-market-share-q2-2020-results-030820
Source: Strategy Analytics, Inc.
MacDailyNews Take: One silver lining in the COVID-19 cloud for Apple is certainly iPad sales.
I’m curious as to how iPad sales are doing in comparison to Chromebook sales. Are those cheap Chromebooks losing any market share to iPads. The price difference of an iPad Pro to a typical Chromebook is huge. The thing is, Apple may be able to ruin the Chromebook market with Apple Silicon MacBooks. Now that would really be something special to sit back and enjoy as an Apple shareholder.