Dell Exec Bashes Apple After iPad 2 Sells Out In Europe, Australia

Apple’s popular iPad 2 tablet has reportedly sold out in Australia and the U.K. following its international launch on Friday, prompting somewhat of a public backlash -- as well as opportune criticism from Dell’s head of global marketing for enterprise.

According to various online reports, Apple’s iPad 2 has sold out in Australia , as Apple retail stores around the country have depleted their inventories for the device. In addition, Apple customers and enthusiasts have reportedly begun accusing the company of deliberately launching without sufficient stock. Over the weekend, Apple’s iPad 2 also sold out in the U.K. , reportedly within hours of the launch. Users looking to purchase the device from the online Apple store have reportedly been told they must wait for 3-4 weeks, and Apple reseller Cancom -- which reportedly has stores in Scotland, England, and Wales – also reportedly ran out of iPad inventory.

Retailers in several other countries including France, Switzerland, Spain and Canda have also reportedly run out iPad 2 units within days of the launch, causing, according to International Business Times, some public frustration with Apple’s tendancy to run out of products in general. With retail outlets in countries like Germany, the U.K., France, Switzerland, Spain and Canada getting stripped of the device immediately after the launch, people are questioning why this happens with Apple more often than not.

As criticism of Apple spread globally on Tuesday a top Dell executive speaking to CIO Australia in Sydney, where many reports of a backlash have originated, criticized Apple’s iPad strategy.

Andy Lark, Dell’s global head of marketing for large enterprises and public organisations, reportedly said that Apple’s iPad will fail in the enterprise space against Dell tablets due to its pricing as well as issues with its platform.

’Apple is great if you’ve got a lot of money and live on an island,’ Lark reportedly said. ’It’s not so great if you have to exist in a diverse, open, connected enterprise; simple things become quite complex.’

Despite Apple’s 83 percent share of the tablet market in 2010, according to IDC, a number of devices running Google’s Android 3.0 operating system for tablets, code-named Honeycomb, were on display at CES 2011 from manufacturers including Samsung and Motorola while Asus, Toshiba, Dell and others are scheduled to bring their own Honeycomb-based tablets in 2011.

Next: Dell Sees Enterprise Tablet Opportunity

’I couldn’t be happier that Apple has created a market and built up enthusiasm but longer term, open, capable and affordable will win, not closed, high price and proprietary,’ Lark reportedly said. ’[Apple has] done a really nice job, they’ve got a great product, but the challenge they’ve got is that already Android is outpacing them.’

Apple’s iPad – which features a somewhat thinner, lighter form factor and a faster ARM-based Apple A5 processor – is geared toward consumers, Lark said, but Dell has the advantage in the enterprise given its adoption of Microsoft’s Windows 7 as well as other platforms in the tablet market.

’We’ve taken a very considered approach to tablets, given that the vast majority of our business isn’t in the consumer space,’ Lark reportedly said. ’We’ve got a far more diversified footprint than some of these players.’

Despite its more competitive pricing compared to its predecessor, Apple’s iPad 2, which starts at $499 for the 16 GB Wi-Fi-only mode, is too expensive according to Lark, for IT managers to order large deployments if peripherals and other costs are added to the price. ’An iPad with a keyboard, a mouse and a case [means] you’ll be at $1,500 or $1,600; that’s double of what you’re paying," he reportedly said "That’s not feasible.’

Dell, meanwhile, has openly adopted Windows Phone 7 and Google’s Andorid OS. Last month, a leaked Dell product roadmap appeared showing several additional devices -- including the Honeycomb-based Dell Gallo and Dell Sterling tablets due in 2011, followed by two more Honeycomb based Dell Opus One and Silver Oak tablets in Q1’12, and two-windows based tablets codenamed Rosemont and Peju.

’Our strategy is multi-OS," Lark reportedly said. "We will do Windows 7 coupled with Android Honeycomb, and we’re really excited. We think that giving people that choice is very important.’

Next: Apple Sells-Out Its Developer Conference Too

Further underscoring both Apple’s momentum and its consumerization of IT segments that haven’t been geared toward consumers in the past, tickets for Apple’s World Wide Developers Conference (WWDC) sold-out within hours of their release, according to several online reports on Tuesday. Apple charged $1,599 per attendee, but tickets priced at up to $2,500 have reportedly appeared on eBay as a result of the sell-out.

According to a report from The Loop citing Gartner analyst Michael Gartenberg on Tuesday Apple is not expected to show off any new consumer devices at WWDC . Apple has introduced devices including several generations of the iPhone at its WWDC conference in the past. However, instead of hardware for consumers, Apple will reportedly focus on software for developers as its upcoming Mac OS Lion platform is expected to come to market in the summer.