Even though Apple's iPod is easily the most popular MP3 player in the world, some analysts believe it has hit critical mass and the chances of it continuing to sell at such a high rate are low.
Those same analysts believe Mac sales will continue to rise and, after some investigative research, it looks like the point has been proved by an unlikely source: the Bank of America.
According to a report released on Friday, Bank of America has found that Apple has commissioned a significant increase in Mac production for the current quarter, while reducing the amount of iPods to be manufactured.
Desktops and notebooks the key?
"We continue to believe that desktops and notebooks are the key driver of the Apple story," analyst Scott Craig wrote in a report to clients on Friday. "Both desktop and notebook production numbers are up 20 per cent from expectations in early January, indicating potentially solid demand thus far in the March quarter, as well as some inventory replenishment."
Craig also reported that when it comes to the iPod, Apple may not be doing as well as it hoped. "Current production expectations for March imply a 5-10 per cent year-over-year unit decline, versus our expectation of 5 per cent growth during the March quarter, likely implying a continuing inventory rightsizing and sales sluggishness," he wrote.
Knowing this, some have speculated that a totally revamped iPod may be on its way to jump-start sales. Of course, if this is true, Apple certainly isn't telling anyone at this stage.
