Apple's Mac sales held up in May while iPod shipments fell

[AppleInsider]

Apple last month saw Mac sales that were fairly inline with those achieved last year while sales of iPods were hit with double-digit declines, according to new retail data released Monday.

Macs in line

In a report on a the findings by market research firm NPD, Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster noted that sales of Macs were down just 3% when compared to those from May of 2008, a positive sign given a troubled worldwide economy.

Munster had been expecting Mac sales to decline anywhere from 2% - 5% during the month. Having now digested sales data for the first two months of the current quarter, he expects the company to report sales of anywhere from 2.2 million - 2.4 million systems for the three-month period ending June.

"This data, along *with our assumptions for the last month of the quarter, implies year-over-year Mac unit growth of -12% to -4%, essentially in-line with the Street at *-8% year-over-year growth," he explained. "However, we expect the shipment of lower priced Macs*on June 8th to drive upside to the Mac number in the final month of the quarter."

iPods behind the curve

The average selling price of Macs saw no change during May, according to NPD, but the same could not be said for iPods, whose average price fell 7.5%. iPod unit sales were also down a considerable 18 percent as pent-up demand for new iPod shuffles introduced in March began to subside and consumers likely began delaying purchases of some of the pricer models in anticipation of new models in September.

Munster, who had been modeling iPod sales to fall off by only 7 percent, nevertheless put a positive spin on the news, saying he expects "a reacceleration" of sales during the current month of June due to Apple's back-to-school promo which offers a rebate with a value sufficient for canceling out the price of an 8GB iPod touch to students who also purchase a qualifying Mac at the same time.

For the June quarter ending this month, the Piper Jaffray analyst believes iPod sales will amount to 9.5 million to 10.5 million, which implies year-over-year iPod unit growth of -14% to -5%, which compares to Street consensus estimates of about -9% growth year-over-year.

Munster maintains a Buy rating and $180 price target on shares of Apple.

[ View this article at AppleInsider.com ]

[MacTel]

It must be those "I'm a PC" commercials that are really impacting Apple. I'd also believe that the Zune HD is playing in on the iPod decline.

[Slang4Art]

Originally Posted by MacTel

It must be those "I'm a PC" commercials that are really impacting Apple. I'd also believe that the Zune HD is playing in on the iPod decline.

hahahahahahahaha

[aaarrrgggh]

At this point, Mac and iPod sales don't have a huge impact on profits with modest sales declines. The banked iPhone earnings will easily absorb this and should push the stock up as we enter earnings season. Still hoping for $165 in July...

[NeilM]

Originally Posted by aaarrrgggh

The banked iPhone earnings will easily absorb this and should push the stock up as we enter earnings season.

Also worth noting is that iPhones obviously cannibalize iPod sales to some extent, although given the price difference I'm sure this is something that Apple can live with easily enough.

[RichL]

How does iPhone + iPod sales compare year on year? I assume the trajectory is up?

[teckstud]

It's that sucky new shuffle.

[Virgil-TB2]

Originally Posted by teckstud

It's that sucky new shuffle.

Wrong.
Shuffles outsell all other models.

[teckstud]

Originally Posted by Virgil-TB2

Wrong.
Shuffles outsell all other models.

The shuffle demand subsided- can't you read? They suck and people realized it. Only diehards bought them initially.

[freakboy]

as others have pointed out, ipod w/o iphone sales is meaningless.

If i had an iphone, i wouldn't buy an ipod. Why would i?

in other news, this is also meaningless without looking at the larger picture? Is the share of ipods dropping? What about macs? If year over year sales were flat for macs, the market share might have gone up by a few points b/c the rest of the industry has been seeing 20% drops in shipments.

[macxpress]

Originally Posted by teckstud

The shuffle demand subsided- can't you read? They suck and people realized it. Only diehards bought them initially.

We can all read....however we don't make false assumptions based on what was said. Nothing in the article stated how low iPod Shuffle sales were. It just said it subsided from the original boom which happens with any new Apple product. Just because you think it sucks, doesn't mean everyone does.

[solipsism]

Impressive Mac numbers again despite the economy (...lack of FW and glossy screens )

I expect the average sale price of iPods to continue to decline. I see many people replacing their iPods for smartphones so any iPod purchase on top of that seems to probably be a Nano or Shuffle.

Originally Posted by macxpress

We can all read....however we don't make false assumptions based on what was said. Nothing in the article stated how low iPod Shuffle sales were. It just said it subsided from the original boom which happens with any new Apple product. Just because you think it sucks, doesn't mean everyone does.

It doesn’t matter what the topic is, he will undoubtedly make the wrong assessment every time, without fail. That is an absolute statement! If I didn’t find his false assertions so annoying I may actually feel bad for him never winning an argument.

[Jim Campbell]

I agree that it's pointless reporting iPod sales without considering iPhone figures. The iPhone is supposed to cannibalize iPod sales because losing sales to phones was inevitable ... the smart thing was to offer a product in the new market segment, which is what Apple has done.

Cheers

Jim

[MadisonTate]

Originally Posted by teckstud

The shuffle demand subsided- can't you read? They suck and people realized it. Only diehards bought them initially.

Just bought an iPod Shuffle last weekend. I LOVE it! When I'm at the gym or jogging, I don't want a display. The controls are perfect. I just need to get a pair of in-ear headphones for it and I'm all set!

[solipsism]

Originally Posted by MadisonTate

Just bought an iPod Shuffle last weekend. I LOVE it! When I'm at the gym or jogging, I don't want a display. The controls are perfect. I just need to get a pair of in-ear headphones for it and I'm all set!

Surely you must be lying. Some have stated that sales of a new product subsiding somehow means the sales have stopped because the device is crap, and he stated on numerous occasions that it’s impossible to use the new shuffle because the cord-based controls are impossible to get hold of.

[wizard69]

Sales have fallen off due to people getting wise to Apples back to school program. Combine that with what are now very attractive MBPs and back to school could be very impressive even in this down economy.

It just amazes me at times the conclusions these people come to when reading the same data I read. The economy is certainly an issue but that just makes people seek out the bargains even if it means waiting a bit for things like back to school.


Dave

[sflocal]

Originally Posted by MadisonTate

Just bought an iPod Shuffle last weekend. I LOVE it! When I'm at the gym or jogging, I don't want a display. The controls are perfect. I just need to get a pair of in-ear headphones for it and I'm all set!

Teckstud doesn't understand the words "gym" and "jogging" for that denotes outside activity. He would have to actually go outside in order to see how the shuffle is used out in the real world and it terrifies him and his species of troll. Keep it simple for him. Most of what is discussed here is way beyond him. That would explain his tendency to fabricate information out of thin air in the hopes some poor soul would actually take him seriously.

[brucep]

Originally Posted by Jim Campbell

I agree that it's pointless reporting iPod sales without considering iPhone figures. The iPhone is supposed to cannibalize iPod sales because losing sales to phones was inevitable ... the smart thing was to offer a product in the new market segment, which is what Apple has done.

Cheers

Jim

Great post . You are saying that they are all in the same basket, the ipods touch and iphone.
True

peace


PS stop feeding the troll
9

[teckstud]

Apple gave us something that no one wanted , a shuffle for the gym that speaks to you, except solipism. He got what he wanted and yet even he hasn't bought one? What's up with that?
Who the hell jogs and wants to change songs by a complicated flailing cord? Who- I ask you? Who?
And BTW - I've ran the NYC marathon.

[solipsism]

Originally Posted by teckstud

Apple gave us something that no one wanted , a shuffle for the gym that speaks to you, except solipism. He got what he wanted and yet even he hasn't bought one? What's up with that?

Now what exactly did I predict and wish for?

[teckstud]

Originally Posted by solipsism

Now what exactly did I predict and wish for?

An iPod that told you're currently playing YMCA by The Village People!

[solipsism]

Originally Posted by teckstud

An iPod that told you're currently playing YMCA by The Village People!

If that is the only song I wanted to announce then I really wouldn’t need it to speak, now would I. However, you are correct. Now tell me, am I not getting that feature with the iPhone 3GS? And did I not state that while the new Shuffle is ideal that my current Shuffle 2G is ideal-enough to not warrant a new purchase?

[greenheaven]

I love my iPhone 3g and use it quite often when jogging. It's not perfect for me though as it is somewhat heavy and tends to bounce around a lot. If it's hot outside and I want to run shirtless (!) I leave it off.

Not going to buy an iPod or whatever. That would be too much ...like consumerism! ;-) But I can understand why some people would own a Shuffle on top of an iPhone. Not necessarily cannibalism. BTW I use the bouncy cord double-tap-next-song feature a lot.

Ps. Check out my PortaPro Griffin hook up on Youtube ;-)

[Aizmov]

Originally Posted by MacTel

It must be those "I'm a PC" commercials that are really impacting Apple. I'd also believe that the Zune HD is playing in on the iPod decline.

Does the Zune HD even has a release date? I'm interested

We'll see how good Microsoft does in terms of software, but the hardware is already amazing.

[teckstud]

Originally Posted by solipsism

If that is the only song I wanted to announce then I really wouldn’t need it to speak, now would I. However, you are correct. Now tell me, am I not getting that feature with the iPhone 3GS? And did I not state that while the new Shuffle is ideal that my current Shuffle 2G is ideal-enough to not warrant a new purchase?

But I thought you wanted something smaller for the gym when you jazzercise? Surely you don't want to chance your brand new 3GS to that rough of a workout do you?

[solipsism]

Originally Posted by teckstud

But I thought you wanted something smaller for the gym when you jazzercise? Surely you don't want to chance your brand new 3GS to that rough of a workout do you?

As I stated, the 2G Shuffle suits my needs fine. When it breaks or gets lost or stolen I’ll happily get the 3G Shuffle. I’m quite rough with my equipment and despite my usual preference for Apple products they are just tools that I abuse quite regularly. I’m actually quite surprised that I’ve had the 2G Shuffle for as long as I have.

[Wiggin]

Originally Posted by MadisonTate

Just bought an iPod Shuffle last weekend. I LOVE it! When I'm at the gym or jogging, I don't want a display. The controls are perfect. I just need to get a pair of in-ear headphones for it and I'm all set!

Out of curiousity...I'm assuming you bought the current gen shuffle (Apple still sells the previous gen shuffle)? If you get in-ear headphones, you'll need ones with the controls on the cord. Are there any available (other than apple's)? Or are there adaptors that will add the controls with regular headphones?

As much as I hate to agree with techstud, the fact that Apple still sells the previous generation shuffle is a pretty strong indication that they knew a lot of people wouldn't like the new one...either because of the increased price or the controls. This is a very similar situation to Apple keeping the white Macbook around when they came out with the higher-priced, no-FW aluminum MB last Fall.

While I'm sure the new shuffle is fine for many people, I would never buy one purely because of the controls. Having them on the cord is a very inconvenient location (for me).

[teckstud]

Originally Posted by solipsism

I’m actually quite surprised that I’ve had the 2G Shuffle for as long as I have.

Why would that surprise? It's actually very well made, got excellent reviews, and if the earphone breaks your shuffle doesn't! The Virgin Megastore was going out of business here in NYC last week and I bought another 2 Gen one for $39.

[dfiler]

Originally Posted by Jim Campbell

I agree that it's pointless reporting iPod sales without considering iPhone figures. The iPhone is supposed to cannibalize iPod sales because losing sales to phones was inevitable ... the smart thing was to offer a product in the new market segment, which is what Apple has done.

Exactly.

It is fully anticipated that dedicated music-player ownership will drop substantially amoungst smartphone users. There just isn't a reason to have a stand-alone player when you're already carrying a device that does that and more. Who wants to carry two devices. Once exception will be people who prefer a smaller device for things like jogging.

So yeah, I would be surprised if iPod sales weren't leveling off or declining.

[teckstud]

Originally Posted by dfiler

It is fully anticipated that dedicated music-player ownership will drop substantially amoungst smartphone users. There just isn't a reason to have a stand-alone player when you're already carrying a device that does that and more. Who wants to carry two devices. Once exception will be people who prefer a smaller device for things like jogging.

So yeah, I would be surprised if iPod sales weren't leveling off or declining.

Your reasoning only applies because you're assuming everyone who has or wants an iPod is buying an iPhone w AT&T. And that is simply not fact.