Apple inventory

According to Ed Sutherland,a veteran technology journalist Apple maintains an average five day inventory on products, with Cupertino outdistancing its PC rivals, an analyst said Thursday.

Financial analysis firm UBS said Dell was the closest PC maker, keeping inventory in stock for just a week, according to checks during the December quarter.

While China’s Lenovo maintained a 15-day inventory average, top PC maker HP had stock sitting an average of 32 days, according to UBS. Chip-making giant Intel turned-over inventory in 89 days. The record went to D-Link with 131 days of inventory.

The speed of product turnover can indicate how well a company is able to gauge consumer demand. Too much inventory can leave firms floating in excess products, while under-estimating demand can leave a manufacturer flat-footed.

Apple’s tight inventory may have been the result of the company clearing shelves of older Mac products to make way for refreshed iMacs and Mac minis unveiled earlier this week.

What is Apple?

Apple Inc. is an American multinational corporation that designs and manufactures consumer electronics and computer software products. The company's best-known hardware products include Macintosh computers, the iPod, the iPhone, and now the iPad. Apple software includes the Mac OS X operating system and the iTunes media browser. As of january 2010 the company operates 284 retail stores in ten countries and an online store where hardware and software products are sold. One major reason why I like Apple Inc. products is because their is no know virus that effects the apple products. You don't have to waste your money on virus scan and other programs to keep your computer clean. With Apple that protection is built into the product.

Established in Cupertino, California on April 1, 1976 the company was first called Apple Computer, Inc. for its first 30 years of business but dropped the word "Computer" on January 9, 2007 to reflect the company's ongoing expansion into the consumer electronics market. Apple has about 35,000 employees worldwide and had annual sales of $42.91 billion dollars in its fiscal year ending in Sept. 2009. Apple has established a unique reputation in the consumer electronics industry. This includes a customer base that is devoted to the company and its brand, especially in the United States. Fortune magazine named Apple the most admired company in the United State in 2008 and in the world in 2009.