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As retailers across the U.S. mopped the Black Friday blood and pepper spray from their floors, Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) walked away from the unofficial shopping holiday with bulging pockets. It sold 68 percent more iPads than usual last Friday, beating sales 
forecasts by 7 p.m. that night.
The day after Thanksgiving is one of the few times Apple offers discounts on its products. The in-store retail deals are over for the time being, but Apple announced it will have free shipping for online orders until Dec. 22.
On Black Friday, Apple lowered the iPad's price by $40 and sold 70 percent more units than last year, according to information from Forbes.
"At this point I think the biggest advantage is in the tablet space. I don't see any strong competition there. Amazon (Nasdaq: AMZN) has already had the Kindle Fire out, and the review seems to be that it's good but not good enough," Hendi Susanto, analyst at Gabelli, told MacNewsWorld.
No 'Compromise Device'
Consumer preference research from Bernstein Research shows that buyers aren't looking for tablets, they're looking for iPads. In the holiday season, some gift-givers might opt for a more affordable product, but sales on Friday showed that they're also looking to get the most bang out of their buck.
"The iPad isn't a compromise device. Something like the Fire is compromising. It's small, it's an e-reader, you can't play games, you can't connect to location-based services, really it provides one tenth of the functionality," Trip Chowdhry, senior analyst for Global Equities Research, told MacNewsWorld.
Considering its overall dominance in the market, combined with the expected arrival of the iPad 3 in the first half of next year, some research firms such as Jeffries predict iPad sales could nearly double in the fiscal year that started in September. The firm estimated Apple could sell 65.4 million iPads, almost twice as many as the 32.4 million it sold in the 2011 fiscal year.
Apple did not respond to our request for comment for this story.
iOS 5 Peeks
Though nothing about the next iPad has officially been announced by Apple, the iPad 3 will most likely run on iOS 5.1, which developers were given a taste of this week. Early reviews didn't report any major changes to the system, including whether or not it fixes the battery life issues that have been plaguing some users of the iPhone 4S.
A few products mentioned in the platform's code, though, reportedly have developers wondering about products in the works. There is a mention of an "iPad2,4," which could be code for a Sprint-specific model. So far, only Verizon and AT&T (NYSE: T) have data plans with the tablet, but since Sprint (NYSE: S) recently picked up the iPhone, a tablet deal could be underway as well.
Ever-Present TV Rumors
One area Apple hasn't exactly exhibited dominance is in the living room, particularly in regard to the TV. The developer's peek at iOS 5.1 gave way to another rumor about the next generation of Apple TV. A coded reference to a TV product under the name "J33" has developers wondering if a full-fledged Apple television, rather than a tiny set-top box, is inching closer to reality.
In addition, an unconfirmed report from the Tokyo Times asserted that Apple would be partnering with Sharp to begin manufacturing large TV sets that would be ready for release in the summer of 2012.
That Apple might be partnering with Sharp is significant especially when it's noted who it's not rumored to be partnering with: Samsung. Though the South Korean electronics manufacturer is a leader in TV sales and has been a major Apple component supplier for years, the two companies have a complex relationship that also includes deep-seated grudges over device patents.
Without reliable information, though, it's impossible to say whether or not Samsung is totally out of the picture, if an Apple television is indeed in the works.
"I think there's still a possibility that Samsung will be one of the major suppliers for the display. It makes sense that Apple would have multiple suppliers, and I think that LG, Sharp and Samsung will still have a part in that," said Susanto.
