Apple launched several new products under its tablet and smartphone lines last September, including several current generation iPad models and the much anticipated iPhone 13 series. However, it appears that customers will have to wait a while longer before they can receive the former.
According to a recent report by Nikkei, Apple is said to have trimmed the production of its iPads in favour of feeding more components to the iPhone 13. It added that production of the tablets was down half from the company’s original plans for the past two months, while parts intended for older iPhones were also redirected to the newer model.
Last month, Bloomberg reported that Apple is expected to cut down the manufacturing capacity of the iPhone 13 series due to the ongoing worldwide chip shortage. While this may still seem likely, Nikkei’s report indicates that the tech giant’s recent decision would help ease its struggle to cope with the smartphone’s strong demand. Apple did not immediately respond to the publication’s request for comment in regards to this matter.
It’s only natural that Apple would shift its focus on the iPhone 13 series’ production rather than its iPads, Counterpoint Research analyst Brady Wang told Nikkei. “The scale of iPhone shipments of around 200 million units a year is much bigger than that of iPads,” he said. “Apple’s most important and critical ecosystems are all surrounding iPhones, its iconic product.”
This is not the first time that Apple has prioritised iPhones over iPads, Nikkei added. The company had also pulled off a similar move last year, where it reallocated some of iPad parts to the iPhone 12 in order to “shield its most iconic product” from supply chain constraints caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
(Source: Nikkei)
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