Fresh off a visit with Apple executives Tim Cook, Peter Oppenheimer and Eddy Cue, Bernstein Research analyst Toni Sacconaghi wrote in a note to investors that he was impressed with Apple’s plans to grow iPhone and iPad marketshare.
Sacconaghi noted that Apple execs were extremely confident and that the company remains focused on capitalizing on growing tablet demand.
Some specific notes of interest include Cook referring to the iPhone as the “mother of all halos” and that Apple intends to develop lower priced offerings as Apple doesn’t want its products to be “just for the rich” and that the company is “not ceding any market.” Speaking of, AT&T recently began rolling out commercials advertising the iPhone 3GS for only $49.
Cook did mention, though, that Apple still has a lot of work to drive even more iPhone growth. Cook explained that Apple is prioritizing striking deals with even more carriers as the Apple COO noted that RIM devices are currently available on 550 carriers as opposed to 175 for the iPhone.
As for the iPad, Cook expects stiff competition in the tablet market and perhaps even more so than in the smartphone realm as all PC and smartphone vendors are coming to the table with their own devices. Cook also mentioned, somewhat cryptically, that Apple has some interesting new things in the pipeline.
This Wednesday, Apple will take the wraps off the iPad 2 and we’ll soon find out if there are any surprise announcements or demos in store.
via Forbes
Mon, Feb 28, 2011
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