As Apple [NASDAQ:APPL] launched the iPad, tales of netbook doomsday were adrift everywhere. But no one quit expected this tablet device to have much of an effect on the PC industry. In fact, most debates along those lines were terminated by proud PC industry supporters saying that the functionality difference was large enough still to not affect PC’s at all. But now, analyst Maynard Um from UBS is saying that the iPad is in fact exerting a detrimental effect on the PC industry and the companies are scurrying to recover.
According to Um, there has been a drop in the sales of conventional PC’s in the wake of the iPad where the notebook companies are now hurrying into making tablets of their own. Whilst the last part is very visible, the lower PC sales are not fully accounted for by the iPad. Um highlights this and says that although sales have been down, the iPad is only affecting the lower end of the market that is closer to the iPad in its pricing.
Whilst he is not convinced that the iPad is actually replacing notebooks because the gap in functionality is still glaring, he is of the opinion that buyers of the iPad are delaying their purchase or upgrade of existing PC’s.
It must also be noted here that a lot of people use basic PC’s to surf the net, visit social networks and read/send occasional emails. Since the iPad does all of that, it can very well replace the PC in some light usage cases. On top of that, it is far more attractive an option than the conventional PC or netbook/laptop.
Um expects the iPad to have a free reign till 2011 thanks to the lack of proper competition and predicts shipments to be 28 million. But he also mentions that that figure might still turn out to be conservative.
[via]
