A report in The Wall Street Journal notes that the order of 10 million units is approximately twice the amount that Amazon has placed with its suppliers for the same quarter. The report does not reveal any fresh details on the launch date of the iPad mini or price, or any technical specifications.
It is worth noting that a report in The Wall Street Journal last week had suggested that Apple's suppliers had already started production of the iPad mini. Another report in Fortune had said that Apple will unveil the iPad mini at a special event to be held on October 17. According to Fortune, Apple will send invitations for the special event by October 10, and the smaller iPad will go on sale on November 2.
WSJ also notes Apple's declining market-share in the US tablet market and quotes industry analysts to indicate this is the right time for Apple to try and grab a share of the growing 7-inch tablet market.
"It makes sense for market leader Apple to extend its dominance in tablets with a smaller tablet," The Wall Street Journal quotes Capital Securities analyst Diana Wu.
The 7-inch tablet scene has plenty of activity off-late, especially since Google's $199 Nexus 7 tablet proved to be a smash hit. Amazon responded by upgrading its Kindle Fire tablet to match the Nexus 7 on price as well as features. Apple's iPad mini is not expected to take on the Nexus 7 and Kindle Fire HD 7" head-on in terms of price, and may be priced around the $249 or $299 mark instead.
"iPad mini will be a big hit if Apple prices it below $300," RBS analyst Wanli Wang told WSJ.
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