Apple’s iPad Announcement Comes Amid Meager Sales

Apple’s event tomorrow couldn’t come at a better time for its sales, according to new data released. The notion that Apple had entirely transitioned into “the iPad Company,” whose tablets would be the sole driving sales force, turned out to be strikingly incorrect. In the June quarter of this year, iPad sales figures dropped 14% year over year, to under 15 million units. In the midst of a tablet market that is becoming increasingly saturated, and is expected to grow by 50% this year alone, these numbers are cause for alarm in Apple’s camp. Part of the problem is that last June, the retina iPad debuted and triggered a large sales bump. In addition, Apple’s premium pricing, in comparison to competitors’ lower prices, is turning people away from Apple’s products. So it will be interesting to see how Apple prices the products it releases tomorrow, in addition to the usual gawking over the specs of the technology itself.