For years, we’ve been hearing analysts and pundits trot out the same old tired line: “Every one who wants an iPhone already has one.” What’s more, a quick Google search reveals an endless stream of articles from years past all championing the exact same sentiment; “The iPhone has peaked.”
Yet every year, like clockwork, Apple manages to release new iPhone models that keep on setting new sales records, quite a feat for a product that was first released nearly 8 years ago.
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During Apple’s most recent earnings report, the Cupertino-based company once again defied analyst expectations and delivered absolutely stellar profits largely fueled by record-setting iPhone sales.
Compared to the same quarter a year-ago, iPhone sales increased by an incredible 40%, setting a Q2 sales record of 61.17 million units in the process. In the last two years alone, Apple iPhone sales during the March quarter increased by 63%.
But the iPhone juggernaut isn’t just about sales figures, it’s about cold hard cash. And a whole lot of it. Just as impressive is the fact iPhone revenue growth year over year was up 55%. As to why revenue growth outpaced unit sales growth, well that’s due to a higher ASP for the iPhone. During Apple’s most recent quarter, the ASP of the iPhone checked in at $659, a year over year increase of $62.
Looking ahead, and given Apple’s track record, it’s hard to see the iPhone freight train slowing down anytime soon. For nearly a decade now, Apple has managed to churn out successive iPhone models with great new features that keep old customers coming back and new customers coming in through the door.
On that topic, Tim Cook noted during yesterday’s earnings conference call that Apple’s iPhone 6 lineup has attracted a higher rate of switchers than in any other iPhone upgrade cycles. Additionally, Cook made a point of noting that the iPhone continues to perform well in emerging markets, effectively stifling the commonly held notion that Apple needs to come out with cheaper devices if it wants to thrive in new markets.
With the Apple Watch launch now behind us, it’ll be interesting to see what types of features Apple has in store for the iPhone 7, assuming the company skips the iPhone 6s naming scheme. While it’s still too early to know with any certainty what Apple has in the works, one of the more intriguing rumors suggests that Apple’s next-gen iPhone may sport a DSLR quality camera, a claim recently bolstered by Apple’s mid-April acquisition of LinX, a company acclaimed for manufacturing cameras with “DSLR performance in slim handsets.”
