NPD: Apple's iPhone 4S, 4 & 3GS were top 3 US smartphones over holidays

Posted:
in AAPL Investors edited January 2014


Apple's iPhone lineup dominated smartphone sales during the holiday 2011 quarter, with the iPhone 4S, iPhone 4 and iPhone 3GS taking the top three spots, respectively, in total U.S. sales.



Apple's control over the top three spots for smartphone sales in the U.S. over the holiday shopping season was revealed on Monday by the NPD Group. It found that although the iPhone 4 came in second place, Apple's 2010 smartphone was outsold by 75 percent by the iPhone 4S, which launched in October.



The disparity was even greater between the iPhone 4S and the iPhone 3GS, which debuted in 2009 and is now available for free at AT&T with a two-year service contract. NPD's data found that the iPhone 4S outsold the iPhone 3GS by five to one.



"Attracted by a faster processor, improved camera and the Siri speech-driven agent, most iPhone buyers paid a premium for the iPhone 4S, making it the top-selling handset in Q4," said Ross Rubin, executive director of Connected Intelligence for The NPD Group.



Following the iPhone 3GS, Samsung's Galaxy S II came in fourth place among smartphones sold in the U.S. over the holidays. Samsung also took the fifth-place spot with the Galaxy S 4G.



Android and the iPhone combined to account for more than 90 percent of smartphone sales in America over the holidays. Android, available on a wider range of models from multiple manufacturers and carriers than Apple's iPhone, represented 48 percent of smartphones sold during the quarter.



The NPD Group found that Android devices performed better among first-time smartphone buyers, as 57 percent of those buying their first smartphone chose a device running Google's platform. Apple's iPhone accounted for 34 percent of first-time smartphone buyers.











"Android has been criticized for offering a more complex user experience than its competitors, but the company's wide carrier support and large app selection is appealing to new smartphone customers," Rubin said. "Android's support of LTE at Verizon has also made it the exclusive choice for customers who want to take advantage of that carrier's fastest network."



NPD's data is based on its Mobile Phone Track and Smartphone Track, which report on activities of U.S. consumers 18 or older. The NPD does not track corporate or enterprise mobile phone purchases.



[ View article on AppleInsider ]

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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 44
    How's this possible?! These phones have no stylus!!!!!!
  • Reply 2 of 44
    jragostajragosta Posts: 10,473member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by anantksundaram View Post


    How's this possible?! These phones have no stylus!!!!!!



    And they don't do Flash!



    And the screen isn't even 4".
  • Reply 3 of 44
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by anantksundaram View Post


    How's this possible?! These phones have no stylus!!!!!!



    ..and no 5 inch screen, quad core processor, 4G and are not running an OPEN operating system. HOW IS IT POSSIBLE?



  • Reply 4 of 44
    Quote:

    "Android has been criticized for offering a more complex user experience than its competitors, but the company's wide carrier support and large app selection is appealing to new smartphone customers," Rubin said. "Android's support of LTE at Verizon has also made it the exclusive choice for customers who want to take advantage of that carrier's fastest network."



    Among my friends less than half of my friends and acquaintances in technology chose an Android, and a small percentage of those were the truly geeky ones - the ones who immediately rooted them and install their own software. The rest who own Android chose them because an iPhone was not available on their carrier (Verizon/Sprint/T-Mobile) and were waiting out their contracts to switch to an iPhone (Verizon/Sprint) or even switch carriers (T-Mob). They chose them based on the recommendation of the carrier store sale staff.



    Now the few that went with LTE Android phones - most of them are frustrated right now because LTE isn't fully deployed in these parts and moving from 3G to LTE seems to eat battery faster than being on one or the other (tower-handling switch-off overhead perhaps?). So when they are on LTE they can watch the battery drain away, or shut it off. Small advantage for speed. Fortunately most of those again fall into the "geekier than thou" category and are comfortable mico-managing their cool handsets.
  • Reply 5 of 44
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AppleInsider View Post


    Apple's iPhone lineup dominated smartphone sales during the holiday 2011 quarter, with the iPhone 4S, iPhone 4 and iPhone 3GS taking the top three spots, respectively, in total U.S. sales.








    Has this sort of thing ever been done by companies in the past? In any industry?



    Has Ford ever had the top 3 car models all at once? Have there been musical groups with the top 3 singles? Has GE ever done it? Sears and Roebuck? Has any actor been in the 3 top grossing movies in any year?



    This seems like an extraordinary accomplishment.
  • Reply 6 of 44
    chabigchabig Posts: 641member
    Head over to CNET, where a writer uses this same data to "prove" that Android is winning the smartphone war. Evidence? He asserts that because more first-time buyers are getting Android phones, the iPhone will slip into irrelevance.



    I, on the other hand, think everyone is entitled to make mistakes. Those first time Android buyers will become second time iPhone buyers.



    http://news.cnet.com/8301-1035_3-573...tphone-buyers/
  • Reply 7 of 44
    nagrommenagromme Posts: 2,834member
    Remember the Android-apologist talking point? “But the iPhone 4S is only new on the INSIDE!”



    I assume they are now surprised that the iPhone 3G/3GS styling from FOUR YEARS AGO THIS JULY, with next to no marketing, outsold every Android device! No wonder Samsung is now (re)copying that old design...





    Quote:
    Originally Posted by chabig View Post


    Head over to CNET, where a writer uses this same data to "prove" that Android is winning the smartphone war. Evidence? He asserts that because more first-time buyers are getting Android phones, the iPhone will slip into irrelevance.



    I, on the other hand, think everyone is entitled to make mistakes. Those first time Android buyers will become second time iPhone buyers.



    http://news.cnet.com/8301-1035_3-573...tphone-buyers/



    My thoughts exactly when I saw those numbers: people who never had a smartphone and don’t know any better find that even an iPhone-knockoff is pretty amazing compare to a 1990s phone. (And they’re right.) And carriers' sales forces push non-iPhones really hard, and those people obey without question.



    But among people who ARE already familiar with smartphones, a larger chunk appreciate why the iPhone is better. Two ways they may have learned to appreciate that; 1) by using an iPhone or 2) by using Android
  • Reply 8 of 44
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by jragosta View Post


    And they don't do Flash!



    And the screen isn't even 4".



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Jonteponte View Post


    ..and no 5 inch screen, quad core processor, 4G and are not running an OPEN operating system. HOW IS IT POSSIBLE?







    What! And Apple doesn't do "true multitasking" in addition to all of the above... and yet Apple's nearly 4-year-old iPhone is outselling the best, latest and greatest Samsung can offer!



    Stupid is as Samsung does...



    One other thing I got from the graph is that no matter how good iOS and Android may be, 5% of the buyers will buy something equal to the Microsoft Kin in market acceptance.
  • Reply 9 of 44
    sflocalsflocal Posts: 6,092member
    Just about every person I know that has purchased an Android phone were first-time smartphone buyers that - and even they admit to - did not have a clue about their purchase. They were either attracted to Android's cheaper price, or given for free, or were blown-smoke by the salesperson that was most likely some Fandroid with an agenda.



    Just about all of them hate their Android phones with a passion. They've broken down and replaced so many times, horrible battery life, and a piss-poor Android experience. No wonder the geeks and tech-heads love Android. It gives their life relevance and makes them feel important when the non-tech community has to rely on them to debug a damn phone!



    Of those that were able to finally get out of their contracts, or given a choice to upgrade.. the iPhone was their choice, and they were forever happy for it.



    That's the reality regardless of what the iHaters will have them believing.
  • Reply 10 of 44
    Apple's iPhone lineup dominated smartphone sales during the holiday 2011 quarter, with the iPhone 4S, iPhone 4 and iPhone 3GS taking the top three spots, respectively, in total U.S. sales.





    The disparity was even greater between the iPhone 4S and the iPhone 3GS, which debuted in 2009 and is now available for free at AT&T with a two-year service contract. NPD's data found that the iPhone 4S outsold the iPhone 3GS by five to one.



    "Attracted by a faster processor, improved camera and the Siri speech-driven agent, most iPhone buyers paid a premium for the iPhone 4S, making it the top-selling handset in Q4," said Ross Rubin, executive director of Connected Intelligence for The NPD Group.



    Following the iPhone 3GS, Samsung's Galaxy S II came in fourth place among smartphones sold in the U.S. over the holidays. Samsung also took the fifth-place spot with the Galaxy S 4G.





    GREAT JOB, APPLE!
  • Reply 11 of 44
    bspearsbspears Posts: 147member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by I am a Zither Zather Zuzz View Post


    Has this sort of thing ever been done by companies in the past? In any industry?



    Has Ford ever had the top 3 car models all at once? Have there been musical groups with the top 3 singles? Has GE ever done it? Sears and Roebuck? Has any actor been in the 3 top grossing movies in any year?



    This seems like an extraordinary accomplishment.



    Tim Allen at one time had number one movie, book, and TV show in America.
  • Reply 12 of 44
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by anantksundaram View Post


    How's this possible?! These phones have no stylus!!!!!!



    Um, are you planning to get me that coffee I ordered any time soon?
  • Reply 13 of 44
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by bspears View Post


    Tim Allen at one time had number one movie, book, and TV show in America.



    Actually it's more impressive than that. Phone #3 (iPhone 3GS) sold less than 20% of phone #1 (iPhone 4S). Therefore Phone #4 (Samsung Galaxy whatever) sold something less than 20% of the top selling phone.



    Places numbered 1 through 3 are not close to each other. By the time you get to places 4 and lower you're looking at somewhat small market share numbers -- for individual devices anyway. As a group, though, Android still sells a lot of devices because there are so many of them. And they're spread out over all carriers, including PayGo carriers like Virgin and Boost.
  • Reply 14 of 44
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by MJ4Ev3r View Post


    post



    Why did you repost the first post and a broken image link?
  • Reply 15 of 44
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by I am a Zither Zather Zuzz View Post


    Has this sort of thing ever been done by companies in the past? In any industry?



    Has Ford ever had the top 3 car models all at once? Have there been musical groups with the top 3 singles? Has GE ever done it? Sears and Roebuck? Has any actor been in the 3 top grossing movies in any year?



    This seems like an extraordinary accomplishment.



    On April 4, 1964, The Beatles occupied the top five positions on the Billboard Hot 100. In the number one slot was ?Can?t Buy Me Love,? followed by ?Twist and Shout,? ?She Loves You,? ?I Want to Hold Your Hand,? and ?Please Please Me.? They remain the only artist to accomplish this feat.
  • Reply 16 of 44
    igxqrrligxqrrl Posts: 105member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by I am a Zither Zather Zuzz View Post


    Has this sort of thing ever been done by companies in the past? In any industry?



    Has Ford ever had the top 3 car models all at once? Have there been musical groups with the top 3 singles? Has GE ever done it? Sears and Roebuck? Has any actor been in the 3 top grossing movies in any year?



    This seems like an extraordinary accomplishment.



    Agreed that it's an extraordinary accomplishment, but your example (Ford) puts things in perspective.



    For many, many years Ford has had the best selling vehicle in the US (Ford F-150). Yet what percentage of cars on the road are F-150s?



    Clearly "best selling product" and "overall marketshare" are very different things. While celebrating the iPhone's success, it's important to keep that difference in mind.
  • Reply 17 of 44
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Tallest Skil View Post


    Why did you repost the first post and a broken image link?





    I am using Safari, and the image shows, then I went on to see it using Google Chrome and it did have the broken link
  • Reply 18 of 44
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by tarfungo View Post


    On April 4, 1964, The Beatles occupied the top five positions on the Billboard Hot 100. In the number one slot was ?Can?t Buy Me Love,? followed by ?Twist and Shout,? ?She Loves You,? ?I Want to Hold Your Hand,? and ?Please Please Me.? They remain the only artist to accomplish this feat.



    Thanks.



    Every one of those is a gem. I bet that the summer of '64 Beatlemaniac heaven!
  • Reply 19 of 44
    just_mejust_me Posts: 590member
    Apple is doom
  • Reply 20 of 44
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by igxqrrl View Post


    Agreed that it's an extraordinary accomplishment, but your example (Ford) puts things in perspective.



    For many, many years Ford has had the best selling vehicle in the US (Ford F-150). Yet what percentage of cars on the road are F-150s?



    Clearly "best selling product" and "overall marketshare" are very different things. While celebrating the iPhone's success, it's important to keep that difference in mind.



    I was wondering about one company holding the Top 3 all at once. Like if the No. 1 pickup was the Ford 150, the No. 2 the F-250 and the Number 3 the F-350.



    Or if one studio came out with the highest, second and third highest grossing films in a year. In other words, one company just completely dominating the top-seller list.



    Did Zenith or RCA ever dominate the old time radio market by selling the top 3 best selling table radios, for example?
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