Previous-gen Apple iPad, iPhone 3GS often outsell new Android devices

Posted:
in iPhone edited January 2014
Older Apple iOS products sold at a discounted price, like the iPhone 3GS and first-generation iPad, are often more popular than newer devices running the Google Android operating system, a new report claims.



Checks with U.S. retail sales channels conducted by Canaccord Genuity technology analyst Michael Walkley found that the iPhone 4 is "by far" the top selling device at both carriers AT&T and Verizon. But Apple's older devices have also found great success.



"Interestingly, our April checks indicated continued strong demand for the iPhone 3GS at AT&T and iPad 1 at Verizon, as these older generation products with reduced prices often outsold new Android products," Walkley wrote in a note to investors on Monday. "We believe this highlights Apple's significant competitive advantage, and these older products help Apple offer a tiered pricing strategy at key channels."



Checks with Verizon stores found that the 16GB and 32GB versions of the first-generation iPad sold out in less than two weeks after the iPad 2 debuted. And at AT&T stores, the $49 iPhone 3GS outsold newer phones like the HTC Inspire and Motorola Atrix.



Checks with stores found that new Android smartphones were largely gaining share from Windows 7 smartphones, but not the iPhone. Walkley also expects the iPhone to remain the top selling handset at Verizon throughout 2011 as upgrades continue, partially because the carrier is not allowing subsidies to customers that are still under a two-year contract.



Walkley also found that the iPad is by far the best selling tablet, while competing products like Research in Motion's PlayBook or the Motorola Xoom have had "modest sales."







"Longer term, we believe Apple's ramping iOS ecosystem will lead to a stronger replacement sales cycle, and this should help drive strong longer term earnings growth," he said.



Starting with the launch of the iPhone 3GS, Apple began selling the previous year's smartphone model in the U.S. for $99 with a two-year contract. This January, the price of an on-contract low-end iPhone dropped even further, to $49.



Collectively, smartphones running Google Android have surpassed the iPhone in terms of units being sold, due to the multitude of Android-powered devices from numerous manufacturers. No individual smartphone model has been able to compete with the iPhone in terms of total unit sales, however, helping to push Apple to record sales of 18.65 million iPhones last quarter.



Apple also heavily discounted the first-generation iPad after the iPad 2 was announced, with discounts starting at $100 and increasing even more over time. Similar deals were also offered by AT&T, which sold the 3G-capable version of the first-generation device, and Verizon, which sold the Wi-Fi-only model bundled with a MiFi 3G hotspot.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 155
    hittrj01hittrj01 Posts: 753member
    And here is my shocked face.
  • Reply 2 of 155
    eh270eh270 Posts: 60member
    ::eyeroll::

    Why does this Android vs iOS thing have to be such a pissing contest?
  • Reply 3 of 155
    quadra 610quadra 610 Posts: 6,757member
    That's how strong Apple's products are.



    Apple's previous gen tech often does better than the competition's current gen!
  • Reply 4 of 155
    carmissimocarmissimo Posts: 837member
    Buy one of these now and tell people you were one of the first to own one. They'll be impressed that you were in on the iPad so early and you'll save a ton of cash. Win/win.
  • Reply 5 of 155
    mugzymugzy Posts: 38member
    I was at Costco yesterday.

    There was a big end-cap display of Motorola XOOMs.

    As I walked up to the display I realized the entire thing was just flat sheets of cardboard that you would take to the checkout and then redeem to get your product. All the slots of "product" were full. None were removed to even make it appear as though there was some demand.



    The only actual device was behind a locked display and it was in some sort of demo mode.

    The demo mode simply said "BOOKS"

    That's all. It never changed.



    I walked away. Is that the strategy to sell these things?
  • Reply 6 of 155
    lkrupplkrupp Posts: 10,557member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by eh270 View Post


    ::eyeroll::

    Why does this Android vs iOS thing have to be such a pissing contest?



    Simply put for those who tout Android, it's more about hating Apple than than being an Android fan. First Windows now Android are the hater's Apple killers. It's really all about Apple. And after a couple of decades of suffering insults, the "sheeple" comments, the Apple death watch clocks, Apple fans are more than willing to rub the hater's noses in it.



    Childish, stupid, meaningless, non productive...yes. Fun...absolutely! And don't kid yourself, the CEOs of these companies have tremedous egos and trash talk each other on a regular basis. See past comments from Michael Dell, Steve Ballmer, Steve Jobs about each other's accomplishments and products. Ballmer and Dell have pretty much shut up recently, though, in light of Apple's rise to power.
  • Reply 7 of 155
    when the dust settles...
  • Reply 8 of 155
    constable odoconstable odo Posts: 1,041member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by eh270 View Post


    ::eyeroll::

    Why does this Android vs iOS thing have to be such a pissing contest?



    You'd need to ask the analysts that question. They're the ones devaluating companies due to lesser market share and not financial health. Apparently, the analysts think that the more product you move the more successful a company or product is. Two decent products aren't allowed to have the same space, so one has to be declared a success and the other a failure. I've always run into the premise that if you're not a winner, you're a loser. No in-betweens.
  • Reply 9 of 155
    neilwneilw Posts: 77member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Mugzy View Post


    I was at Costco yesterday.

    There was a big end-cap display of Motorola XOOMs.

    As I walked up to the display I realized the entire thing was just flat sheets of cardboard that you would take to the checkout and then redeem to get your product. All the slots of "product" were full. None were removed to even make it appear as though there was some demand.



    That's pretty standard operating procedure for that type of device at Costco. iPods were always sold the exact same way. All (or almost all) the slots are always full in my experience. Nothing personal on the Xoom in the particular instance.



    That being said, Costco displays of such items are not going to stimulate demand, unless they're being steeply discounted and people just buy one "because it's cheap." Apple has a huge advantage in the tablet game due to its retail stores.
  • Reply 10 of 155
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by eh270 View Post


    ::eyeroll::

    Why does this Android vs iOS thing have to be such a pissing contest?



    It is only a pissing contest because you chose to label it as such. It is and will continue to be a hotly contested competition between the OSes as the market develops for both the smartphone category and the revised tablet category. This is how business is done and its OK. In fact it is good, because it helps keep the market roiling and while it creates some uncertainty for consumers as they try to chose the product best suited for their needs, it means that the market has a wider variety of products to address those needs.



    It's all good.
  • Reply 11 of 155
    damn_its_hotdamn_its_hot Posts: 1,209member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Mugzy View Post


    I was at Costco yesterday.

    There was a big end-cap display of Motorola XOOMs.

    As I walked up to the display I realized the entire thing was just flat sheets of cardboard that you would take to the checkout and then redeem to get your product. All the slots of "product" were full. None were removed to even make it appear as though there was some demand.



    The only actual device was behind a locked display and it was in some sort of demo mode.

    The demo mode simply said "BOOKS"

    That's all. It never changed.



    I walked away. Is that the strategy to sell these things?



    Well, it was after all COSTCO. Hardly the type of store I would go to while trying to educate myself on a product - their sales folks are really cashiers/stockers.



    I think it also tells the story of how they (the manufacturers) have chosen to sell these - through a warehouse store? It looks like commodities rather than higher end electronics.



    I wouldn't go shopping there for a new TV or home stereo system until I new what I wanted.
  • Reply 12 of 155
    kibitzerkibitzer Posts: 1,114member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Mugzy View Post


    I was at Costco yesterday.

    There was a big end-cap display of Motorola XOOMs.

    As I walked up to the display I realized the entire thing was just flat sheets of cardboard that you would take to the checkout and then redeem to get your product. All the slots of "product" were full. None were removed to even make it appear as though there was some demand.



    The only actual device was behind a locked display and it was in some sort of demo mode.

    The demo mode simply said "BOOKS"

    That's all. It never changed.



    I walked away. Is that the strategy to sell these things?



    As neilw said, Costco will just take the cardboard illustration they pick up at the service desk register and trot it back to the open slots in the display. But your description of the demo setup is really pathetic marketing. Compare that with all the gear set out on the tables in an Apple Store for consumers to try.
  • Reply 13 of 155
    nairbnairb Posts: 253member
    I spent the last 12 months hearing that the only reason Andoid is doing so well is all the cheap devices. Now we hear a lot of apple sales are old, cheap devices.



    Looks like that argument cant be used to justify why android OS had 50% for smartphone sales in Q1 2011, way above the iPhone.
  • Reply 14 of 155
    prof. peabodyprof. peabody Posts: 2,860member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AppleInsider View Post


    Older Apple iOS products sold at a discounted price, like the iPhone 3GS and first-generation iPad, are often more popular than newer devices running the Google Android operating system, a new report claims. ...



    I don't know that this is anything to celebrate. All this really means is that there are incredibly high levels of very stupid people out there.



    The reason the carriers do the contract deals they do with the discounts on hardware is it's a kind of scam that they know a significant portion of the population falls for. The cost of the device appears lower and the end user thinks they are getting a deal when in fact the price of the contract itself is always far higher and the only cost to really watch out for. Saving a hundred or even a hundred and fifty dollars on the handset is nothing given that the true cost is absorbed into the contract.



    Only a complete idiot would go for a $50 3Gs instead of a $200 iPhone 4 when the $150 they save is only a tiny fraction of the contract and you are stuck with the 3Gs for two or three years. Most who do so regret it later. The carriers know also, that a very large portion of those that bite on this particular hook will be so frustrated they will be upgrading that phone before the 2 or 3 years is up anyway.
  • Reply 15 of 155
    asdasdasdasd Posts: 5,686member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Prof. Peabody View Post


    I don't know that this is anything to celebrate. All this really means is that there are incredibly high levels of very stupid people out there.



    The reason the carriers do the contract deals they do with the discounts on hardware is it's a kind of scam that a significant portion of the population falls for. The cost of the device appears lower and the end user thinks they are getting a deal when in fact the price of the contract itself is always far higher and the only cost to really watch out for. Saving a hundred or even a hundred and fifty dollars on the handset is nothing given that the true cost is absorbed into the contract.



    Only a complete idiot would go for a $50 3Gs instead of a $200 iPhone 4 when the $150 they save is only a tiny fraction of the contract and you are stuck with the 3Gs for two or three years. Most who do so regret it later. The carriers know also, that a very large portion of those that bite on this particular hook will be so frustrated they will be upgrading that phone before the 2 or 3 years is up anyway.



    So what if this fools people, if it does it does.



    ( In any case, at least here in the UK, the total cost of ownership of a iPhone 4 is much higher than a 3GS - when the both come with the same package, number of minutes, data etc - the iPhone 4 is both more expensive to "buy" and more expensive on the contract. )
  • Reply 16 of 155
    asdasdasdasd Posts: 5,686member
    In any case what this means is this - if APple allow more choice of iPhones, a few different models, from cheap to expensive, with slight variations in screen size ( if even) then it can clean up.
  • Reply 17 of 155
    nofeernofeer Posts: 2,427member
    how about this

    iphone 5 subsidized 200 + data plan

    iphone 4 $100

    3gs prepaid contract free



    my 3g works better than the prepaid android messes out there

    my friend who bought one paid (don't know why) $200 android i believe 2.2 but not upgradable

    he has tried some apps many don't work for his phone

    and the prepaid plans with data nearly match a contract phone



    i know prepaid may work perhaps in china and europe but its the data cost that doesn't make it such a deal



    he doesn't want to be locked into a contract (but requires a credit card-go figure, and if something comes out BETTER he will buy that phone



    the next big thing for apple is to address this prepaid customer base



    if all future iphones 5, 4, and even 3gs could get a dual cdma, gsm



    that would give apple i think huge control over the market and push apps



    they could even put the inards of the 3gs in the iphone 4 case



    apple must be working this angle soon



    boost straight talk, etc have a good price point 45 and 50 unlimited but you buy the phone, apple could become a mvno and sell it that way, therefore more access to appstore
  • Reply 18 of 155
    I know this is a fanboy fourum, but anyway, here are some facts contradicting to your article :



    http://venturebeat.com/2011/05/09/ga...-3m-preorders/



    While your statistics might be slightly true with iPAD 1 since lot of people want it and there are so many of the andriod tablets, there is no way that apple sells 3 million old phones.



    Just do a little research before making ridiculous claims.
  • Reply 19 of 155
    shokuneshokune Posts: 1member
    Android manufacturers doesn't rely on single products

    they release couple of products and expects return from each.



    where apple release 1 phone a year, and expect return from 2 phones (current one, and the immediate previous one)....



    but if you combine total sales then the reality is bitter for apple



    apple is not gaining market shares.... but android is gaining market share in both low end and high end handset market.....



    just don't try to pretend and feel happy of being proud owner....

    find out what's the problem of iphones... why androids are out-selling iphone?
  • Reply 20 of 155
    paxmanpaxman Posts: 4,729member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by techguyaitec2005 View Post


    I know this is a fanboy fourum, but anyway, here are some facts contradicting to your article :



    http://venturebeat.com/2011/05/09/ga...-3m-preorders/



    While your statistics might be slightly true with iPAD 1 since lot of people want it and there are so many of the andriod tablets, there is no way that apple sells 3 million old phones.



    Just do a little research before making ridiculous claims.



    I love that - "... might be slightly true ... " - an infinitely variable true or false statement
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