What to Take From the Apple Event

It’s what everyone’s been talking about for months: on Tuesday Apple held their 2^nd announcement event in as many months, and revealed the new iPad Air and iPad Mini with Retina Display. There’s a LOT of information out there about the Apple event, what they announced and what they didn’t announce, but we’re going to tell you what you need to know.  

 

Software Updates

• OS X Mavericks was announced as Apple’s new computer software, and it’s completely FREE! How cool is that? Any computer running software as old as 2007 can get Mavericks for free. It also includes two new Apps, iBooks and Maps, for the desktop.

• Apple’s productivity apps will all be free for any newly purchased iOS or Mac device, with more than 20 Apple apps getting updates. This includes updates to iPhoto, iMovie, GarageBand, Pages, Keynote and iCloud to name a few.

 

Hardware Updates

• Apple revealed the brand new iPad 5 iPad Air, which as always is “thinner, lighter, and better” than any iPad before. It’s faster and more efficient with its Apple A7 processing chip, the same chip that’s in the iPhone 5s. The iPad Air is available in two colors: space gray and silver. The iPad Air is priced at $499 and begins shipping on November 1^st so you can expect to see these beautiful devices broken and in your shop for repairs before you know it!

• The new Apple iPad Mini with Retina Display was announced, and its main improvement is in the title! The retina display improves the clarity of the device, and the increased pixels to 2048 by 1536 pixels will make the images sharper than ever. The iPad Mini with Retina Display includes an improved A7 chip for more processing power. The iPad Mini with Retina Display also comes in two colors: space gray and silver. The price of the iPad Mini w/ Retina Display starts at $399 and begins shipping November 1^st.

• The newest Mac Pro comes with some small improvements, including one fan instead of eight and it’s the first Mac to boast two graphics cards. With a price tag of $2,999 to start, it’s clear this is a serious device for serious professionals.

 

What’s It All Mean?

• Alongside the iPad Air, Apple announced they would continue to sell the iPad 2 as a lower priced alternative at $399. This is GREAT news for repair shops! Don’t feel pressured to lower your price on iPad 2 repairs because your competition is offering it for $70, or because “the iPad 2 is an outdated device.” Have some faith and stick to a price that you believe is reasonable.

• Apple has sold over 170 MILLION iPads. That’s 170 million iPads to eventually break and need a repair.  iPad repairs can be tougher than other device repairs, making iPad repair totally worth the money – and there’s a LOT of money to be made here.

• As with the launch of new devices, you may see a lull in business as your would-be customers choose to upgrade over repairing. However do not let this discourage you, as these brand new devices will eventually break and need repaired!

• Apple’s claim of the “same durability” with the new iPad Air really means, “This device will break just as easily as the iPad 4 did.” You can be sure you’ll be seeing plenty of these in your shop.

• iPads are everywhere, used by everyone, and able to do almost anything! Of all the handheld tablets on the market, 81% are iPads. If you don’t offer iPad repairs, either because you don’t know how or you don’t get any requests for the repair, learn it and advertise it. iPad repairs are huge and again, there’s money to be made here.