Based on anecdotal evidence, analysts believe sales for Apple’s new iMac are strong so far, according to a CNET News story.
Though market research firm NPD Techworld said it doesn’t have enough data on the iMac’s retail sales to comment, more orders of the revamped consumer machine have resulted in longer-than-anticipated shipping times.
“There is an overwhelming amount of demand for the new iMacs, despite the higher price points,” UBS Warburg analyst Don Young wrote in a research report Thursday.
Young, who noted that the new iMacs were “gaining traction,” based his comments on a private meeting with a senior executive in charge of Apple’s retail operations.
“The Apple Store is exceeding Apple’s traffic expectations,” he told CNET News.
Mark Specker at SoundView Financial Group said in his own research report last week that demand had exceeded his initial expectations, the article adds. Specker expects Apple to sell 1.3 million new iMacs this year, CNET reports.
Apple itself said that late last month it had received a record-breaking 150,000 pre-orders for the flat panel iMac.