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"It's important to always try new things, otherwise you get left behind," Yasuda sa... id. "All these books in just one place, and so many familiar, classic titles that I've never had a chance to read. I want to buy the iPad just for that."

Yasuda and his peers, looking for easier ways to browse the Web and send e-mails, are a potentially lucrative demographic for Apple as the proportion of people aged 65 and over climbs to records each year in countries including the U.S., China and France. Japan has the world's oldest society, with the elderly accounting for an estimated 22 percent of the population, almost triple the global average.

"The iPad is a good tool for the elderly because it's very forgiving of mistakes, something the seniors fear when dealing with computers," said researcher Takahiro Miura of the University of Tokyo, whose team is working with International Business Machines Corp. on using computers to help senior citizens rejoin the workforce. "Unlike the PC, it doesn't require prior knowledge."

Android Competition

Motoo Kitamura, 78, a former gas salesman, said the tablet helps him communicate with his 2-year-old grandson, who turns it on himself to play games. Kitamura uses it to follow the Hanshin Tigers baseball team and show vacation pictures.

"I think using the iPad could help keep dementia at bay," he said. "Trying new things like that is a good mental exercise."

James Cordwell, a technology analyst at Atlantic Equities Service in London, said the iPad's appeal to the elderly is helping the company reach beyond its traditional base of younger customers and fend off Google Inc.'s Android mobile-device operating system, which targets more technologically savvy users.

Demographically, the world, especially in developed markets, is getting older and it's probably where Apple is least penetrated," Cordwell said. Elderly users are "a key source of growth for them in the future."

Apple, the world's biggest technology company by market value, said net income leaped 78 percent and revenue reached a record $15.7 billion last quarter, the first to include sales of the iPad tablet computer and the newest iPhone.

BlackBerry, Hewlett-Packard

Customers bought 3.27 million iPads, which sell for $499 in the U.S. and 48,800 yen ($565) in Japan for the low-end model. Research firm ISuppli Corp., of El Segundo, California, said Apple may ship 12.9 million this year.

"Every age group is important to Apple," said Carolyn Wu, a Beijing-based spokeswoman for Apple. The Cupertino, California-based company doesn't provide a breakdown of iPad sales by region or age.

Apple faces competition from BlackBerry-maker Research In Motion Ltd., which plans to introduce a tablet computer in November, two people familiar with the plans said last month. Hewlett-Packard Co. and LG Electronics Inc. also said they plan to introduce tablet computers.