Three million new Apple tablets sold in three days

Last week's iPad mini and iPad 4 launch sees sales double the figure set by iPad 3 in March

The launch of the iPad Mini and iPad 4 has been twice as popular as that of the iPad 3, according to Apple, which said that it has sold three million of the devices in their first three days on the market.

The March unveiling of the iPad 3 saw Apple records broken, with sales of Wi-Fi-only models reaching 1.5 million in its first three days.

Tim Cook, Apple's chief executive, said both devices have been received well.

"Customers around the world love the new iPad mini and fourth-generation iPad," he added.

"We set a new launch weekend record and practically sold out of iPad minis. We are working hard to build more quickly to meet the incredible demand."

The new mini tablets, which are available in 34 countries, measure 7.9in, and signal Apple's entrance into the 7in tablet market.

Figures from IHS iSuppli suggest the vendor's new, smaller tablet is more profitable than the iPad 3 as it costs $198 (£124) to manufacture and sells for $329.

IHS iSuppli analyst Andrew Rassweiler said that while its competitors' tablets earn them less margin, their business models see them enjoy further revenue through incremental content purchases and advertising.

He said: "Amazon and Google want to put tablets in consumers' hands – even if it means doing so at a minimal hardware profit – with the intent of making their money on the content users buy, and/or the advertising and paid content they will be exposed to by buying the devices.

"Amazon's 7in Kindle Fire HD and Google's Nexus 7 tablets... are essentially low-margin or no-margin giveaways at a $199 retail price. Apple makes healthy margins on its hardware, while Amazon and Google employ different strategies with their 7in tablets."