Deals: Numerous Sales Hit Apple's 2020 iPad Air, Prices Start at $549 for 64GB Wi-Fi

Come on new iPads…clear that inventory so Tim gives us Xmas in March.

I keep putting off buying a new iPad because I'm well.... cheap. My first generation iPad mini crashes on many web pages, is laggy, yet I stick with it because I don't want to spend the money. However, I had no problems spending over $600 on annual checkups for my cat and dog. I think I have my priorities right.

The $549 price is the same as the educational price, so not really a drop. My new iPad Air arrived today from Apple. Trading in a 2019 ipad that I bought from Amazon for $230...getting $250 for it from apple. I like making money on trade-ins.

Wait for iPad Pro 11 2021, or get an Air now, basket dipped the air more times this week than any other apple product I can remember...someone tell me what to do 😂

dude wait. you only stand to benefit on both ends. at the end you wont notice much difference with performance if you do regular stuff but maybe youll envy new screen tech. if you really want the Air after, youll get it for $100 off.

I wonder if the powers that be are predicting a new iPad Pro release soon.

BTW, do these retailers need permission from Apple to put these products on sale?

So the short answer is... yes, if the vendor is Apple itself, and either selling to or drop shipping through Amazon, they're involved in supporting the price decrease.

Long answer, That's a big "it depends," both on the contract held between the vendor and the merchant, and the accounting basis they use for inventory. Remember, vendor and merchant are going to benefit from increased sales. So they will have to agree on how to split the cost.

Amazon has a checkered past with brands on this issue, but assuming they are working closer with apple than they did with say, wusthof, there will be a delivered cost and a retail point or range. And price changes will be aligned with the vendor, because the merchant wants to share the hit in the margin, in exchange for the increase in sales.

ie. apple sells 120 units instead of 100, after a price drop of 10% on a widget. They better give a cost decrease to offset the temporary shift in retail price, otherwise apple makes out like a bandit, and amazon loses margin. The goal is the vendor price supports the entire retail decrease, because the merchant may have a greater inventory risk.

Also, it depends on inventory accounting. This is less likely as Amazon doesn't carry inventory like a B&M, very JIT. I wasn't in role so I wouldn't know, but OTHER fulfillment based merchants used cost accounting because their inventory was so low. That's fine. But if it was RETAIL accounting, their finance department is looking at the value of inventory at retail. So if someone discounts the widget 10%, they take a hit on the balance sheet for that 10%. That's a loss. It needs to be budgeted, and hopefully vendor supported. Otherwise the incremental sales/profit on a discount item could cost the store MORE due to the inventory markdown, and a lack of a markup on reduced inventory at end of sale.

I keep putting off buying a new iPad because I'm well.... cheap. My first generation iPad mini crashes on many web pages, is laggy, yet I stick with it because I don't want to spend the money. However, I had no problems spending over $600 on annual checkups for my cat and dog. I think I have my priorities right.

No worries, I'm on Year 11 of not understanding why I need an iPad in the first place when I have an iPhone and MacBook.