SAN FRANCISCO |
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Apple Inc coasts into 2012 with a strong wind in its sails, a clutch of envelope-pushing products in its hold, a record share price, and a steady hand at the tiller.
But its very success – with the market-leading iPad and the voice-enabled iPhone 4S – is luring cheaper rivals to the surface.
Google Inc’s Android, launched a few years ago and taking aim squarely at the high-end iOS, continues to attract cellphone makers. Amazon.com Inc’s Kindle Fire, half the cost of the iPad, is expected to have chipped away at the lower end of the tablet market.
Finally, though many on Wall Street, betting that an iTV and 4G iPhones and iPads will again pack its stores, continue to bank on a share-price climb to as high as $700, some begin to question the sustainability of Apple’s torrid growth pace.
Apple tacked on $43 billion to its top line in fiscal 2011, lifting it to $108.25 billion –
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