Apple cuts down on iPad Production to Provide Chips for iPhone 13

Apple has disclosed it is cutting down on the production of iPad tablets to deploy more components to the production of the iPhone 13.

Nikkei reports that the move is likely connected to the crunch that has hit the global supply of chips. The newspaper also said that the company cut down by half its initial production plan for the iPad while it also diverted parts intended for the production of older iPhones to that of the iPhone 13.

Apple has been able to manage the crunch owing to its huge purchasing power and the long-term supply agreement it sealed with chip vendors.

Apple’s boss Tim Cook has also predicted that the impact of the supply crunch might be worse as the chip shortage is now affecting most of its company’s products.

For now, Apple will concentrate more of its efforts on the production of its iPhone as it forecasts a bigger demand for the smartphone than for the iPad as many Western markets begin to recover from the impact of the pandemic.

Huawei’s exit from the market paved way for other smartphone makers including Apple in China. This helped to boost the company’s sales in the last quarter. Apple recorded an astounding 83% annual sales growth in China during the quarter.

Apple’s iPhone business raked in about $192 billion last year. The iPad business, which dominates the tablet space with over a third of the global market share, brought in nearly $32 billion.