Taiwan channel retailers expect Apple's iPad Air and iPad mini with Retina display to be available in the local market as early as late November.
Since iPads are mostly sold standalone, the new Apple tablets are expected to take a lot less time before entering the Taiwan market compared with iPhones. The channel retailers believe the new iPads will be widely available in Taiwan starting from December for the year-end shopping season.
Some retailers also pointed out that Apple products are no longer as appealing as before to some local consumers, judging from the fact pre-orders for the iPhone 5s and 5c have been much weaker than those for previous models.
The pre-orders for the iPhone 5c only account for less than 20% of the overall pre-order volume for the new Apple smartphones, and the entry-level smartphone is expected to create inventory issue for the retailers.
