It’s no secret that the iPad is Apple’s fastest selling product ever. That fact was made clear during the company’s recent financial call when Tim Cook compared how long it took for other Apple products to reach current iPad sales figures. What hasn’t been as clear is just how much the iPad is expanding Apple’s overall customer base.
A new NPD study, however, shows that the iPad is playing a significant role in helping Apple attract new customers. It turns out that one out of every four iPad buyers have never owned an Apple product before.
NDP’s Apple Ecosystem Study notes that this isn’t just good news for Apple, but that it also represents a new trend. Previous studies found that the iPod was the first Apple device for the vast majority of people (82%). Over the past two years, however, that number has declined. Today only 57% cite the iPod as their first Apple product.
Considering iOS as a platform shows even stronger numbers of new customers for Apple – when iPad and iPhone sales are combined, one in three iOS device purchasers are new to Apple products.
The study offered some other glimpses into the market for Apple products overall.
NDP found that that 33% of U.S. homes contain at least one Apple device. On average, homes with Apple products tend to have 2.4 Apple devices and 69% include an iPod. Most Apple owning households aren’t all-Apple – 58% include a PC and 30% include a non-Apple smartphone.
While Apple-owners also tend to own non-Apple computers and phones, the idea of Apple’s ecosystem seems to be appealing. Of all electronics shoppers, 40% of say that owning multiple devices in the same brand family is an important purchase factor
