The Wall Street Journal reports that the second iteration of the fastest selling Apple product of all time has begun production. After selling 14.8 million iPads in 2010, the technology giant needs to fend off an increasing amount of competitors like Samsung’s Galaxy Tab, Motorola Xoom, and the HP Slate. IDC, a Global Marketing Intelligence Firm, predicts 30 million iPads will be sold in 2011. According to WSJ, here is what “people familiar with the matter” had to say about a new version coming out:
“The new device will be thinner, lighter and will come with a faster processor, more memory and a more powerful graphics processor . . . It will have a front-facing camera for the first time for features like video-conferencing, but the resolution of the new iPad’s display will be similar to the first iPad.”
iOS 4.3 is expected to come out in this week with new features for both the iPhone and iPad. The developer pack eludes to wireless syncing, Photobooth, personal wi-fi hotspot and a front facing camera for the new iPad. Another exciting feature is photo streams that friends will be able to follow, much like Instagram and PicPlz. All of these features come together to offer high engagement with our mobile devices and opportunities for brands to connect with their customers. Advertisers will have no shortage of ways to engage customers but will need to pick the ones that will increase brand affinity and potentially lifetime value.
The iPad ships this week and the industry is buzzing with predictions. After the success of the iPod and the iPhone, consumers seem ready to love even an Apple device they don’t need. Or is someone craving something between an iPod and a laptop?
We asked our team of digital-savvy early adopters whether the iPad will be a success or failure and the majority went thumbs down:
Despite the negative outlook, we recognize the likelihood iPads will sell like hotcakes. Morgan Stanley reported that Asian suppliers revised shipping forecasts and now expect to ship 8-10 million devices by the end of 2010. Did you order an iPad already? Are you waiting for the next generation to come out? Are you a predisposed iPad hater? We want to hear from you!
Below is our list of articles that caught our attention this week.
Clients Say Shops Are Too ‘Reactive‘(AdWeek): It’s easy to think that clients want us to react to their requests. Not really. Clients (at least the good ones) want us to partner with them and proactively come up with solutions to meet their business challenges. It’s a subtle difference and we enjoyed the reminder.
Apple’s Spat with Google is Getting Personal(New York Times): It’s been fascinating watching the Google / Apple Rivalry unfold. The two companies have a fundamentally different approach to world: devices or platforms, closed or open, a multitude of devices linked together through software or an all Apple world? No doubt, the rivalry has become personal: (from the article) At the heart of their dispute is a sense of betrayal: Mr. Jobs believes that Google violated the alliance between the companies by producing cellphones that physically, technologically and spiritually resembled the iPhone. In short, he feels that his former friends at Google picked his pocket.
Interest in Effective Marketing Campaign Management Rises (Marketing Forecast): A study from Kellog states most senior managers at companies with $400M+ marketing budgets are not using business cases or ROI to make funding decisions. These executives are relying on their gut instincts because they lack analysts to track the data and don’t have a handle on LTV/NPV/ROI. This is a tough challenge for online marketers, particularly when many CMOs had their instincts honed in an age when the online channel didn’t exist!
Ad Dollars Go Digital(Fast Company): Excellent graphic, though we assume that’s a typo on the mobile forecast (nobody thinks it’s going down!)
