Mobile Computing News

Photo: Apple

Negative sentiment be damned, the Apple iPad has reportedly been pre-ordered over 100,000 times over a weekend, raking in revenue of at least $49 million before the device is even available.

The supporters: tablet computing is here

Some analysts view the initial success of the Apple tablet as confirmation that consumers are ready for this new sub-category of computing devices. Others argue that the initial success is a result of Apple’s hard-earned reputation for quality over the last decade, especially, and others still argue the spillover from the iPhone is the primary driver for sales.

Photo: Apple

Regardless, this should put Apple close to its presumably conservative sales estimations as well as reaffirm predictions of supply shortage come launch date. The company seems content on pushing their tablet through pre-orders so as to reap revenue with as much immediacy as possible, as well as build more hype on the back of short supply.

And the rest

In addition to the Apple tablet going on pre-order, various accessories such as the keyboard dock and VGA adapter were also available to pre-purchase. During the pre-order phase, other information regarding the iBook store and DRM emerged, with the expected Fairplay DRM being included in books bought on the iBook store – meaning those books can only be read on the Apple tablet.

The detractors: foolhardy consumers

Photo: Apple

Some have dismissed purchasing the Apple tablet, a product that is neither available for release and that has been in the hands of so few people outside the media, as plain stupid. These naysayers, who are not necessarily against the Apple iPad, maintain that Apple mania could lead to consumers feeling a burn in their pocket for a device that may not, in the end, be deemed worth it.

What is safe to say is if the Apple iPad bombs, it would have bombed having tripped over a hurdle, rather than struggling to get out of the gates fast enough.