Massive demand for the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus may have resulted in Apple’s eagerly anticipated 12.9-inch Retina iPad being pushed back to 2015, according to a new report in the Wall Street Journal. This chimes with August reports from Bloomberg claiming that the mythical iPad Maxi would arrive by early next year.
Apple reportedly planned to produce the larger iPad in mass volume starting in December, but had to put that idea on hold so its supply chain can fulfill iPhone 6 orders — particularly for the iPhone 6 Plus, which has proven more popular than even Apple expected.
One supply chain source is quoted in the article as saying, “It would be challenging for display makers to split resources and spend a few months to ramp up production for a new larger screen iPad now.”
The Wall Street Journal says Foxconn — the manufacturer handling iPhone 6 Plus production — is currently struggling to meet orders for the larger, 5.5-inch iPhone and that chairman Terry Gou is touring factories in Zhengzhou to personally oversee operations.
The report also references the upcoming 12-inch Retina MacBook Air, which it affirms is entering mass-production in December.
Apple’s next big media event is scheduled for Thursday, October 16. Although the media invites don’t say what is likely to be announced, the agenda is likely to include new iMacs and iPads — though not necessarily the 12.9-inch model.
Luke Dormehl is a U.K.-based journalist and author, with a background working in documentary film for Channel 4 and the BBC. He is the author of The Apple Revolution and The Formula: How Algorithms Solve All Our Problems … and Create More, both published by Penguin/Random House. His tech writing has also appeared in Wired, Fast Company, Techmeme and other publications.
5 responses to “Incredible iPhone 6 demand pushes 12-inch iPad launch to 2015”
I like how every year the 12″ iPad pro gets “Pushed back”
There are already evidences that this product is in the works, but obviously it isnt one of the priorities, and the software will require lots tweaks. Like the split screen which already is written in ios 8. I’m waiting for this product as it’ll be helpful in viewing sheet music, picture references when doing designs & large drawings. But it certainly wont be as popular as the other two smaller sizes. It makes sense for apple to keep pushing it back when other demands are higher
what evidence. Rumors and so called leaked parts from places like Digitimes? Perhaps a patent or two from Apple. Patents are only proof that something was thought about, doesn’t equal Apple will do it. They might test and reject and recover R&D via licensing to other companies.
There are a couple of intertwined issues for me related to the so called 12 inch iPad. I keep seeing what appear to be very sophisticated analyses of why or why not Apple
should produce a 12 inch iPad. It should and it should in the near term but not as a narrow band strategy targeted only at business, education, or some other market but as a part of a strategy to move its overall customer base towards the inevitable 4K transition in display technology/content creation and manipulation/content consumption, away from whatever hybrid Windows/MacOS/iOS infrastructure its users may utilize, and towards a coherent Apple ecosystem built around 4K and its implications for product and service design. In addition Apple needs
to contemplate the opportunity represented by the very substantial number of
Windows customers who are not enthralled about updates either to Windows or MS
Office.
1) My iPad 2 helpful for the last few years is obsolete in terms of contemporary iOS software and its hardware capabilities.
2) My preferred iPad “Office” software which worked very well on my iPad2 is no longer available. Alternatives are not viable absent an absurd “subscription” model, absent
the requirement to “get with it” with “cloud” services, or absent succumbing to
the Google ecosystem. What will be my mobile platform for email, Web, and “Office” software, Apple?
3) I like a ton of people own a Windows computer (a laptop) which for me runs Windows 7. Many others still own and run Windows computers running Windows XP. I have no interest in the endless and unproductive upgrade path within MS Windows much less the Office applications whose updates just make it more complicated and cumbersome to use. What if anything will Apple do to capture a Windows marketplace that has yet to vote with its feet for newer versions of Windows and Office?
4) I am still looking for applications with give me “Office” compatibility with no hassle.
Apple’s attempts at the present moment are inadequate. Pages and Numbers are unusable on my iPad 2 in terms of speed and in terms of the screen real estate I want to use that type of program effectively.
5) I am an avid photographer who is on the cusp of a move to 4K videography. Apple is not offering a strategy for that marketplace.
6) Apple missed whatever opportunity it was developing for the HD TV marketplace; Ultra HD (4K) is now emerging as the new standard for home consumption of television and home created media. Apple has yet to declare a strategy to move its ecosystem to 4K. This is strategic. It involved iPhones, Macintoshes, iPads, and Apple TV. Apple
needs to show its customers how to make this transition in an affordable and coherent way. The current run on iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus is going to represent an issue for consumers and Apple a year from now as customers face the need to consider a 4K compatible set of devices to achieve coherence among phone, computer, camera, tablet, and TV. What is required here is guidance from Apple and a sensible approach to this massive transition.
7) 4K is going to challenge the design of Apple products. It’s going to require multiple
times the storage capacity currently in vogue and corresponding communications bandwidth. I believe that is going to challenge the architecture of iPads which have no local storage of any consequence. In addition I think 4K may challenge Apple’s
commitment to non user accessible and replaceable batteries. With the arrival of 4K I believe customers will hold onto their devices longer and will be frustrated if they find that the device outlives its usefulness due to storage or battery issues.
8) I will soon be in the market for a replacement for one or the other of my tablet, my laptop, my phone, and my TVs. What guidance does Apple have for me?
9) This is not about a 12 inch iPad alone although if it is positioned correctly I will be standing first in line for it. It is about much more. And I am surprised at the dearth of writing about this from presumably sophisticated technology focused journalists.
I’ll hope that Apple in addition to whatever it announces next week will begin to provide leadership and guidance for its massive customer base.
Everyone’s expecting iPhone 6 to come out! It’s not suprising that Apple is spliting our attentions by producing 12-inch iPad. Also, now we can see Apple is trying hard to meet the customers’ needs demanding larger screens. But there are still some people who want iphones to keep its own style and size!!! And I’m one of them :)