Apple may not have enough iPad mini 2 units to meet holiday demand

[RaduTyrsina]

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The Retina display iPad Mini is finally a reality (however, only the iPad Air launches for consumers this Friday, on November 1st). But at this moment it’s not quite sure whether or not Apple will have enough iPad Mini 2 units to meet the demand. Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook was asked during his company's quarterly earnings conference call by Steve Milunovich, an analyst with UBS, if the iPad maker will manage to meet the high demand.

Tim Cook didn’t express a great deal of confidence, saying the following:

"It's unclear whether we will have enough for the quarter or not. We know how many we will have, but you really don't know the demand until you start shipping."

To remind you, the iPad mini with Retina display is launching after the new iPad Air which could mean that there were issues in the supply chain.

A new report from DigiTimes cites sources with Taiwan's supply chain who points at Sharp as being the main bottleneck. The company is reportedly having problems with production yields of the 7.9-inch display panels for the iPad Mini, just like we have previously presumed. DigiTimes said:

"The availability of the iPad mini with Retina display may not be enough to meet market demand because Sharp's supply of 7.9-inch Retina display panels based on its Oxide TFT process is seeing low yield rates, according to sources with Taiwan's supply chain. LG Display (LGD) is another supplier 7.9-inch Retina panels, the sources noted. LGD uses a-Si process and accounts for about 60% of the panels supplied for use in Apple's iPad mini with Retina display, with Sharp accounting for 40%, the sources said."

Shortage issues don’t seem to affect the iPad Air, as the company will offer same day in-store pickup for orders. Are you going to buy the latest iPad Air or the iPad Mini with Retina display?

Source: MacRumors, DigiTimes