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Back in our February Apple iPad survey report we found “The pre-launch demand for the new iPad is greater than the pre-launch demand for the original iPhone.”  It wasn’t surprising, therefore, when in early May Apple announced 1 million iPads sold in the first month — and reported that sales had outpaced those of the original iPhone.

But now that the iPad has been on the market for several weeks, ChangeWave has just completed two brand new surveys:

• A May survey of 3,174 consumers to measure future demand for the iPad, and
• A second survey of 153 new iPad owners to discover their actual impressions of the new tablet device.

Here is a brief look at selected results from the ChangeWave report:

Future Demand Trends

Consumer demand for the Apple tablet going forward is even stronger than the extraordinary pre-launch demand we recorded back in our February ChangeWave survey.

A total of 7% of respondents now say they’re Very Likely to buy an iPad and another 13% say they are Somewhat Likely – the highest level of consumer interest we’ve seen to date, and far surpassing February’s pre-launch demand survey (4% Very Likely; 9% Somewhat Likely).

Shaking Up the e-Reader Market

We took a close-up look at the e-Reader market to gauge the iPad’s impact — and the ChangeWave survey results show the iPad profoundly shaking up this market.

As part of our May survey, 245 respondents identified themselves as currently owning an e-Reader. We then asked this group a series of questions.

Which of the following eBook Readers do you currently own?

	Current Survey May ’10
Kindle (Amazon)	62%
iPad (Apple)	16%
Sony Reader (Sony)	7%
A Smart Phone with eBook Capability	7%
Nook (Barnes & Noble)	3%
Other	7%

Among e-Reader owners the Amazon Kindle (62%) remains the leader by a wide margin, but we note that the Apple iPad (16%) is already registering a 16% share of the e-Reader market just weeks after its initial release.

A Major Transformation in Content – The Rise of e-Newspapers and e-Magazines

Back in February 2010 and once again in May, we asked e-Reader owners to tell us the type of content they were reading with their devices. When we compare the responses from February (before the iPad launch) with the responses from May (after the iPad launch) we find a major transformation in progress regarding e-Reader content.

Which of the following types of content do you currently read with your eBook Reader?

The percentage reporting they read Newspapers (18%) on their e-Reader has surged 7-pts since February – as has the percentage who report they’re reading Magazines (14%; up 7-pts).

A close-up look at our May results has uncovered major differences in the type of content being consumed by iPad readers vs. all other e-Readers.

Importantly, fully half of iPad e-Readers (50%) say they read Newspapers on their tablet device compared to just 14% of all other e-Reader owners. Likewise, 38% of iPad e-Readers say they read Magazines compared to 11% of all other e-Reader owners.

In short, more than 3 times as many iPad e-Reader owners say they read Newspapers and Magazines as do all other e-Reader owners.

New Owners Weigh In On Their iPads

We also asked 153 new Apple iPad owners a series of questions to garner their reactions to the new tablet device – beginning with their level of customer satisfaction.

Overall, how satisfied are you with the Apple iPad?

In terms of overall satisfaction, the vast majority of owners believe the iPad is delivering on its promises – with three-in-four (74%) saying they’re Very Satisfied with their new tablet, and another 17% say they’re Somewhat Satisfied.

The iPad ratings are nearly identical to the highest rated Smart Phone among consumers – the Apple iPhone. But we note that Apple has now reached these nosebleed levels with a brand new product.

Top Likes and Dislikes

We asked owners what they liked best and disliked most about their new iPads.

What do you like best about your Apple iPad?

Screen Size and Quality (21%) top the list of iPad likes, followed by Ease of Use (15%), the Overall Size and Weight (12%), and Portability (10%).

Some actual owner responses:

Respondent SKI9571 writes that he most likes the “Large bright screen and easy, familiar iPhone interface.” For LSC85053 it’s the “Screen size and resolution, the ease of use, and the number of apps.” And for DAR49714, “The user experience is like nothing I have ever experienced on a computer.”

WIN22317 most appreciates the iPad because it’s “…a social device and highly portable. We keep it in our living room and family room – and people just pick it up to surf the web, trade info, look at photos, etc.”

Not all is perfect with the new device, however, as seen later in the report when we asked owners about their dislikes.

What do you dislike most about your Apple iPad?

The top dislike reported by new owners was Lack of Adobe Flash (11%), followed by Internet Connectivity Issues (9%) and Poor Screen Visibility/Keeping it Clean (9%).

Despite these problems, our ChangeWave survey uncovered no ‘smoking gun’ dislikes. There wasn’t any one problem with the iPad that was cited by a large number of respondents. From a manufacturing perspective, this is a particularly important finding that bodes well for the device’s future.

How Are Owners Using Their iPads?

What are owners actually doing with their iPads? To find out, we presented them with a list of 16 possible iPad uses and asked them to tell us which ones they were utilizing most.

The following chart summarizes the 8 most common uses reported by new iPad owners

From the list of possible iPad uses, which ones have you utilized the most with your new iPad?*

*Note that individual respondents were allowed to choose up to 5 uses each.

The survey findings show the degree to which the iPad is meeting the challenge of becoming a truly convergent device. First and foremost, new owners are Surfing the Internet (83%) and Checking Email (71%). But 56% also report they are using Apps from the Apple Store, and 48% say they are Watching Videos, 33% Reading eBooks and 29% Playing Games.

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