Apple is reportedly reducing its fourth-quarter orders by 25 percent from the company's iPad parts suppliers based in Asia, according to a JP Morgan Chase investor note released Sunday. The cutback suggests that Apple will only take delivery of 13 million iPad 2 units in the seasonally strong final quarter of this year -- down from the investment firm's prior estimate of 17 million units.

Market rumors cited Monday by Taiwan-based industry-trade publication DigiTimes suggest that iPad demand is slowing down and that Apple may be forced to cut the price of the iPad 2 as rivals introduce lower-priced models. For example, Amazon is expected to unveil a rival tablet in the $199 to $250 price range this week running a customized version of Google's Android mobile platform.

However, the significance of Apple's iPad supply-chain adjustments remains unclear. Among other things, Apple may be moving to clear its iPad 2 inventories in advance of the launch of a new model early next year that is designed to fully leverage the capabilities of iOS 5.

Following a recent trip to Asia, Piper Jaffray's analysts said Monday they remain confident in their iPad estimates of 10 million and 12 million for the final two quarters of calendar year 2011.

"While we heard chatter of supply-chain order reductions, the absolute sell-in figures for second-half 2011 likely remain well above our estimates," Piper Jaffray analysts Gene Munster and Andrew Murphy wrote in an investor note released Monday.

Analysts Maintain Prior iPad Estimates

Piper Jaffray's analysts continue to expect Apple's full-year iPad sales to reach -- or even exceed -- 35.9 million units.

"We are modeling for second-half 2011 iPad unit [shipments] of 22 million -- up 91 percent year over year from 11.5 million in the second half of calendar year 2010," Murphy said in an...

2011-09-27 03:45:24