Macs brought in 33% more money than the tablet line last quarter Apple on Tuesday said it sold just 10.9 million iPads in the June quarter, a drop of 18% compared to the same period the year before, marking double-digit declines that now stretch back to January 2014. The iPad generated $4.5 billion in revenue, representing just 9% of Apple’s total revenue of $49.6 billion, the smallest share ever in the tablet’s five-year history, including its debut in the second quarter of 2010 when the iPad accounted for 14% of Apple’s revenue. Yet CEO Tim Cook continued to talk up the opportunities for the iPad, a habit that may be wearing thin among Wall Street analysts who have heard it all before. “I am still bullish on iPad,” Cook said during a conference call with those analysts yesterday. “I think and I believe that the iPad consumer upgrade cycle will eventually occur.” Moments later, Cook added, “It’s not like people have forgotten iPad or anything. It’s a fantastic product. So I see a lot of runway.” His use of “forgotten” may have been on the mark, even it was unintended: Buyers have forgotten the iPad. In the final quarter of 2013, Apple sold a record 26 million of the tables, booking a record $10.7 billion in revenue that represented 20% of the total for the quarter. The recent numbers were simply shades of those at “peak iPad.” In lieu of sales numbers to trumpet, Apple fell back on another habit: Talk up the satisfaction ratings of a slow-selling product. “iPad customer metrics continue to be extremely positive,” said CFO Luca Maestri after citing a ChangeWave Research survey that declared 97% of those polled were “very satisfied” with their purchase. Both Cook and Maestri touted the upcoming iOS 9 — which is in public beta at the moment and expected to launch in September — as a kick-starter for iPad sales. Each mentioned the new iPad-specific features in the upgrade. “There’s some incredible productivity enhancements coming in with Split View and Slide Over and Picture In Picture,” said Cook. “These things are incredible features.” When Apple introduced iOS 9 at its Worldwide Developer Conference in June, analysts read the introduction of the features, especially the first two Cook ticked off, as sending a strong signal that a larger-screen iPad, perhaps in the 12-in. range, is in the works and would appear this year. With the continued contraction of iPad sales and associated revenue, it was no surprise that the Mac again brought more money to Apple’s bottom line than its younger sibling. Apple said it sold 4.8 million Macs in the June quarter — the average of 30 analysts polled by Fortune on Monday nailed that number — and produced $6 billion, 33% more than did the iPad line. Both unit sales and revenue for the Mac were up 9% over the second quarter of 2014. Related content news analysis Apple earnings: About that iPhone 'slump' in China Based on information from Thursday's earnings report, it seems that data pointing to an iPhone slump in China were over-baked. By Jonny Evans May 03, 2024 9 mins iMac iPhone Apple news Microsoft begins to phase out ‘classic’ Teams Microsoft is encouraging Teams customers to move to the new, faster version of the collaboration app; the older version will be switched off next year. By Matthew Finnegan May 03, 2024 3 mins Microsoft Teams Collaboration Software Productivity Software news analysis Apple confirms it will open up the iPad in Europe this fall The latest efforts to comply with Europe’s Digital Markets Act mean developers can offer to side load apps to both iPhones and iPads in the EU. Apple has also taken steps to improve what it offers to smaller and non-commercial developers in the By Jonny Evans May 02, 2024 6 mins iPad Apple Mobile Apps news Udacity offers laid-off US workers free access to its courses for 30 days Sign-ups will be available over the next 30 days By Lucas Mearian May 02, 2024 4 mins Technology Industry IT Jobs IT Skills Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe