The much-awaited Apple iPad was launched in the country without any fanfare. While consumers were eager to look at the iconic product and retail stores received good enquiries on Friday, the first-day first-show kind of mad scuttle expected for a celebrity launch was missing.

In fact, some of the stores did not even receive stocks till late evening. However, retailers expect the momentum to pick up during the weekend.

iPad has been priced between Rs 27,000 and Rs 40,000 – depending on whether it comes with Wi-Fi or 3G. imagine, the premium reseller of Apple products, is also offering EMI options for HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank card holders. The lowest priced iPad is in fact lower than the price of the iPhone which costs Rs 28,500 for the 8 GB 3GS handset.

No frenzy

Mr Ajit Joshi, CEO and MD, Infiniti Retail, that runs the Croma chain of stores, says the store has been getting constant enquiries from customers for sometime now but the launch day saw no frenzy.

According to a store manager at an imagine store here, consumer response has been “more than lukewarm but definitely not crazy.” “Today, we have seen mainly students coming in, but expect more serious buyers during the weekend,” he says.

Mr Kaushal Nevrekar, Business Head, iStore by Reliance Digital, too expects a good turnout in the weekend, with Friday too seeing strong enquiries.

While Apple has kept away from marketing campaigns, retailers such as iStore and eZone are riding the iPad wave with their own promotions like offering freebies along with the device. They have also trained their staff on product features.

Mr Manoj Kumar, Chief Executive Officer, eZone, a consumer durables retail chain from Future Group says the chain is planning an ad campaign for the iPad launch during the weekend.

The retail launch is also backed by a network of service centres from imagine.

Consumer reaction

Is the Indian consumer excited about the iPad launch? Mr Deven Panse, a techie, says, “Apple seems to have launched the entire package in India as well – the 3G gig and everything. For people like me who aren't allowed to check personal emails at the work-place, this gadget - with Wi-Fi and all - comes in so handy. And since it looks like a diary, it will easily pass the security check in office where I cannot carry any computing device other than the company laptop,” says Mr Panse.

Now that Apple's latest gadget has finally hit the Indian retail shelves, will it force competition, which so far was shielded from the iPad effect, to change its retail strategy? Says Mr Ranjit Yadav, Country Head, Samsung Mobile and IT: “Our strategy is not linked with competition. We already have in place retail plans, which include more tablet launches in India. Samsung expects to corner a 50 per cent of the tablet market in India this year.”

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