Apple Slashes Price on New iPad to Bolster Market Position in Tablet Sales

Apple has aggressively stepped into the competitive tablet arena with its new iPad, priced enticingly at a starting point of just $329. Unveiled together with the red iPhone 7 on Tuesday, this move is a clear bid to reinvigorate sales and shift dynamics in the ever-evolving tablet market.

With a 9.7-inch Retina display, up to 10 hours of battery life, and 64‑bit A9 chip, the new iPad packs both performance and power. It sports a solid 8-megapixel camera, a slight downgrade from the 12-megapixel lens featured in the iPad Pro, which hit markets in November 2015. Essential features such as Wi-Fi and LTE connectivity, iOS 10 as its operating system, and security features like Touch ID fingerprint sensor round off the tablet’s impressive specifications. Consumers can get their hands on this new offering from Apple starting March 24th.


The new iPad rings up considerably less on the cash register compared to the iPad Pro models, which launched with price tags starting at $599. This strategic price slash by Apple, although surprising for some, is rooted in observable market trends. Despite Apple holding a commanding lead in the tablet market, reports suggest a dip in the overall tablet sales. The sector allegedly saw a 12.3% decline in the second quarter of 2016 year-over-year, dropping from 44.1 million units shipped to 38.7 million units. During this period, Apple grasped 25.8% of the market, leaving competitors like Samsung trailing with just 6%.

Independent research firm, Strategy Analytics conducted a comprehensive study of the tablet market dynamics in the third quarter of both 2015 and 2016 and found some noteworthy statistics. Apple iOS shipments slipped 6% annually, with 9.3 million iPads shipped in Q3 2016, snatching up a 20% worldwide market share. However, the average selling price (ASP) climbed 6% to $459 year-on-year, set amidst a higher blend of premium Pro devices bolstering revenue.

Conversely, Android-branded vendors faced a challenging period. They shipped a total of 30.1 million units worldwide in Q3 2016, down 17% from 36.0 million a year earlier and down 1% sequentially. Their market share whittled down to 65% due to the high growth of Windows tablet shipments. Windows shipments soared by 25% year-on-year, with 7.3 million units in Q3 2016, up from 5.8 million in Q3 2015 to claim 16% of the market share.

With this newly launched, competitively priced iPad, Apple is aiming to consolidate its position in the market and possibly gain new ground. This fresh strategy indicates a bold move on Apple’s behalf and could potentially reshape future tablet market scenarios.