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IHS Lowers 2011 iPad Shipment Estimate

New York – Apple suffered
a shortfall in iPad 2 shipments during the first quarter, but the company is
expected to quickly ramp up production, according to IHS iSuppli.

IHS iSuppli has lowered
its iPad shipment forecast by 9.1 percent down to 39.7 million for 2011. This
is down from the 42.7 million units the research firm had predicted would ship
in February.

IHS expects total iPad
shipments to rise 163 percent in 2011 compared to 2010 when about 15.1 million
units shipped.

IHS said the drop off was
not due to component issues stemming from the March 11 Japanese earthquake and
ensuing disasters. Instead the company pointed to manufacturing problems that
include quality issues with the LCD touchscreens, production shortages of its
speaker, lamination problems and general end-unit production problems.

IHS analysts praised Apple’s quick response to the earthquake
saying Apple quickly found new component sources, particularly of touchscreens.
To the point where other tablet manufactures may have trouble obtaining the
screens for their products.

All of these moves will lead to Apple retaining its market share
lead. Giving a huge boost to the iPad is its continued dominance in the app
marketplace.

“Content represents Apple’s most significant competitive
advantage in the tablet market,” said Alexander, director of monitor research
at IHS. “Application development is accelerating for the Android market but
still lags far behind Apple. Furthermore, the kind of seamless access to
movies, music and other content that Apple can provide is still not in place for
the competition.”

The research firm also cited better pricing and somewhat poor
reviews of non-Apple tablets as other reasons Apple will retain its No. 1
position.

However, as more competitors starts shipping product Apple can
expect to see some erosion in share.

IHS predicts Apple’s competitors will start outproducing the iPad
in 2013.

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