iPad Poised to Become Most Quickly-Adopted Electronics Device Ever

As we have reported here before, the sales figures from the iPad continue to exceed the predictions of even the most optimistic Apple fan. And those fans will surely like the contention of CNBC, who using data from Bernstein Research, today crowned the iPad as the consumer electronic with the fastest adoption rate ever, stealing the title from the once-coveted DVD player.

The iPad sold 3 million units in the first 80 days after its release in April, and its current sales rate is about 4.5 million units per quarter, says Bernstein Research, a rate far surpassing that of the first iPhone.

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At this rate, the iPad is poised to become the fourth largest consumer electronics category, passing up gaming hardware and the cellphone. Televisions, smart phones, and notebook PCs are currently the largest categories.

This success has come with the iPad available, until the last few days, from only one major retailer – BestBuy. Both Target and Amazon have begun selling the iPad this month, gearing up, no doubt, for the holiday season.

The DVD, according to CNBC, sold a mere 350,000 units in its first year. But even more striking than simply comparing sales figures is the fact that the DVD player – along with the smartphone and the laptop – is a category, whereas the iPad is, well, an iPad – a device unto itself.

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