Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
You missed the point that the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus were also for sale during this period and quite well still.

HO HO HO!

Doesn't say much for Face ID's popularity. Apparently way more than 55% of people still wanted the Home button after all. All in all, I'd say the huge winner was Touch ID.

Pretty much what I predicted and was laughed at for saying. The Home Button and Touch ID are sound solid tech.

All these new gestures and mistaken touches to me lead to a "bag o' hurt." Too many things to remember. Apple is about simplifying things. Taking the home button away unnecessarily complicates a lot of things in my opinion.

But what do I know? The buyers have spoken. :D

Tim Cook, the bean counter, should have noticed this. What will happen when there is no Home Button iPhone left in the mix? Hmm.

While I prefer TouchID over the 1st Gen FaceID (too slow in comparison) people/customer will choose and be conservative with new technology plus couple that with the lower cost of the 7/+ and 8/+ and it will certainly outsell the X.

FaceID is an initial experiment, considering it cannot be used horizontally or upside down. Once these minor irks are improved, people will gradually transition to FaceID. I remember when the initial iPhone was introduced the whole concept of a touch interface with gestures was foreign for many users, with future updates more gestures were added. Many did not even know how to use those gestures, eventually with trial/error and discovery one became accustomed to it.

When the iPad was introduced which further expanded on gestures it was the same situation. At times I prefer certain gestures that are only available on the iPad and not the iPhone and at times vice versa. I hope Apple ties both product gestures together sooner rather than later.
[doublepost=1532574534][/doublepost]
And those of us who have actually purchased an X will say "Notch, what notch?"

The notch really needs to shrink further as it is not possible to eliminate it at present. There is another solution, which I provided to Apple, I am unsure if it will be used in a future product.
[doublepost=1532574620][/doublepost]
iPad mini 4 hanging in there with about 18% of units sold in the 2018 survey.

Bodes well for a refresh.

I hope iOS 12 improves the performance on the iPad mini 4. I like its size and usability, it just too slow for my liking running iOS 11.
[doublepost=1532574676][/doublepost]
I love my iPhone 8, its been a great phone!

I was recently considering the RED iPhone 8, however with an update around the corner I will wait to see what is released.
[doublepost=1532574879][/doublepost]
This surprises me. I love my fat phone, a/k/a The Behemoth but I didn’t realize it was so popular.

iPhone X should have used a 18.5:9 ratio for the screen. The 0.5 is to accommodate the sliver for the notch. All the content viewed would be displayed as 18:9 ratio. Another solution was to make it cinema 21:9 however that may have been too tall. Anyhow the present ratio is messed up for videos that are letterboxes.
[doublepost=1532575220][/doublepost]
Meanwhile ANALists, "we predicted they would sell one iPhone X 256Gb to every man, woman and child on the planet, but they didn't deliver, it's not use that were wrong, it's Apple."

I am uncertain if any carrier discounts account for the increased iPhone X sales. I wonder if it would have sold to the present percentage without deep discounts.

Where I live the iPhone 8 is provided for “free” on a 24month contract and the iPhone X for $200 on a 24month contract, however you can get it free with an additional discount from the carrier.

FaceID is to slow for my taste in its 1st Gen version and its limitation to acknowledge in horizontal or upside down is a no go. TouchID functions in any direction, this is a bit of a step backwards in this regard. Only had issues with TouchID with wet fingers (easily resolved).
 
  • Like
Reactions: Val-kyrie
If they roll out a Mini with modern internals (with or without pencil support), I'm first in line to buy. Else, I cling to the aging Mini with a dose of lingering hope.

AFAIC, if the problem is (too little) profit margin on this model, raise the price up to match it's bigger siblings.

A mini pro with a 8.7” screen would sell rather well in the same physical body. Drool worthy.
 
  • Like
Reactions: HobeSoundDarryl
Apple should be a bit concerned that in the June2018 results, almost half of all iPhones sold in the US were not from the current refresh cycle (7 and lower).

It was the compromise year, with 2 choices: stick with proven, if long in the tooth, phones, or stretch your budget a long way to a cutting-edge experiment. At a time when we are near a peak in innovation in smartphones. I have no surprise that so many people are hanging back with the oldies but goodies.
 
After I got used to the new gestures (and it did take a while), I find it very hard going back to a home button. The gestures became second nature and I'm very quick getting around one handed. I agree with you on FaceID though. Works great when I'm holding the phone, but a hassle when the phone is laying on my desk. Would not mind the addition of an in-screen fingerprint reader, though I'm not holding out hope that I'll ever see one on an iPhone.

YES! And in-screen fingerprint reader would be great even without a home button. I often activate my phone while it's sitting flat for stuff.
 
You missed the point that the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus were also for sale during this period and quite well still.

HO HO HO!

Doesn't say much for Face ID's popularity. Apparently way more than 55% of people still wanted the Home button after all. All in all, I'd say the huge winner was Touch ID.

Pretty much what I predicted and was laughed at for saying. The Home Button and Touch ID are sound solid tech.

All these new gestures and mistaken touches to me lead to a "bag o' hurt." Too many things to remember. Apple is about simplifying things. Taking the home button away unnecessarily complicates a lot of things in my opinion.

But what do I know? The buyers have spoken. :D

Tim Cook, the bean counter, should have noticed this. What will happen when there is no Home Button iPhone left in the mix? Hmm.

Because huge slices of the population don't look for the cheapest option regardless of what it is? I think your theory runs counter to every Walmart and Amazon transaction on record.
 
iPad mini 4 hanging in there with about 18% of units sold in the 2018 survey.

Bodes well for a refresh.

Amazing. It’s been forever since the mini has been last updated yet it sold better this year than last year according to this. It sold almost as much as the 10.5 Pro and more than the 12.9 Pro. This flies in the face of those saying there’s no market for the mini.
 
I think I "now" know what AAPL Upper Mgmt "was trying" to pull off:

1.) iPhone X = Porsche 911 Carrera

2.) iPhone 8+ = Porsche Cayenne

3.) iPhone 8 = Porsche Macan


#2 & #3 are close fits !

But #1 missed badly !


Ideally, AAPL would (soon) offer a 5" version of the 8+ w/ 4 GB of DRAM, call it the 8s+, then they would have the equivalent of a 2019 Macan Turbo, out soon !

BTW, the iPhone X isn't doing so well NOT just because of it's price ... many Users love their TouchID, as well as their Hardware Home Button functionality !

BMW once had the best sports sedan on the market, but in their infinite wisdom, they migrated away from Hydraulic-assist power steering, & lost ALOT of loyal customers in the process.

The same "may" happen to AAPL ... or more specifically, older TouchID / Hardware Home Button iPhones will continue to be top sellers moving forward, outselling AAPL's latest & greatest, except to their Fanboys & Fangirls, of course.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Val-kyrie
I think I "now" know what AAPL Upper Mgmt "was trying" to pull off:

1.) iPhone X = Porsche 911 Carrera

2.) iPhone 8+ = Porsche Cayenne

3.) iPhone 8 = Porsche Macan


#2 & #3 are close fits !

But #1 missed badly !


Ideally, AAPL would (soon) offer a 5" version of the 8+ w/ 4 GB of DRAM, call it the 8s+, then they would have the equivalent of a 2019 Macan Turbo, out soon !

BTW, the iPhone X isn't doing so well NOT just because of it's price ... many Users love their TouchID, as well as their Hardware Home Button functionality !

BMW once had the best sports sedan on the market, but in their infinite wisdom, they migrated away from Hydraulic-assist power steering, & lost ALOT of loyal customers in the process.

The same "may" happen to AAPL ... or more specifically, older TouchID / Hardware Home Button iPhones will continue to be top sellers moving forward, outselling AAPL's latest & greatest, except to their Fanboys & Fangirls, of course.

Great post. One obvious thing though... the iPhone X is selling as expected. The price has deterred many people, it’s not FaceID that has turned people away. Many folks simply cannot afford to spend that much on a phone but Apple knew this, they wanted a top tier device, it’s how they manage exclusivity across the market.
 
The x is too expensive and also ugly. Has a screen ratio not 16:9 with missing corners. Is a step down from 6,6s,7,8 pluses that have more actual screen real estate.

Next years bigger x should resolve this upgrade path issue, only Apple can beat the price down but it was a bad year for sure.
 
Huh. So much for the belief that the Plus phones were for Asia.

Ever take a tour of a really old building and have to duck through the doors? The tour guide always says, "people were smaller back then". I wonder what theories they'll eventually arrive at about human development in the early 2000's.
 
  • Like
Reactions: MartyvH
Great post. One obvious thing though... the iPhone X is selling as expected. The price has deterred many people, it’s not FaceID that has turned people away. Many folks simply cannot afford to spend that much on a phone but Apple knew this, they wanted a top tier device, it’s how they manage exclusivity across the market.

Since this article is based on US numbers... wouldn't many of those folks be getting phones on some sort of monthly payment plan from their carrier?

You're right... it sounds crazy to spend $1,000 on a phone today.

However... if you're given the option to pay $41 a month for that same phone... it suddenly becomes much more palatable. You're gonna have a monthly phone bill for the rest of your life anyway... why not bundle a device payment in there too? :p

$29/mo - iPhone 8
$33/mo - iPhone 8+
$41/mo - iPhone X

It's only $12/mo separating the base iPhone 8 from the base iPhone X... and only $8/mo separating the 8+ from the X

That's not really a big difference when you consider how much you're paying just to have service in the first place!

Basically... if you think about how much your carrier is charging you every month... is an extra $8 or $12 really a problem?

I'm just having difficulty imagining a person who can afford paying $120/mo to Verizon for service+phone... but $132/mo is impossible.
 
It is obvious when every cell phone provider was giving one free with the purchase of another one. It was actually expected.
 
If they want to offer an affordable option, $499 would sound good.

Apple already provides an affordable option, that would be the iPhone SE under $499.00. We can’t just justify price points based on what ‘sounds good’ for an iPhone, there a company out to make money, and even the iPhone 6s is not priced unreasonably given it’s still a strong performing phone.
 
At a time when we are near a peak in innovation in smartphones. I have no surprise that so many people are hanging back with the oldies but goodies.
I think that the peak in mobile phone design is long past. There are still innovations but they are mostly esoteric novelties rather than useful functions. For most people the cost of the novelties (Face ID vs Touch ID, all the 3D stuff, the ability to badly measure objects, etc.) add little to the value of the phone.

I have an iPhone X and while it's much better than my previous iPhone 6S, I rarely - if ever - do anything with it that I couldn't do with the previous phone. (Actually, no. I can make phone calls with the iPhone X. My iPhone 6S was notorious for never getting a signal.)
 
Interesting that iPad mini 4 did well. That data point jumps out at me, given the rumours of its demise. I'm surprised Apple is considering dumping the Mini, because anecdotally I know it's very popular with some people who see it as the ideal e-Reader. Some people have both a larger iPad Pro and an iPad mini. For example, if you have a 12.9 inch Pro then there's no way you're using that to read books (well, maybe you are, but it's not ideal). Of course the Mini gets squeezed by larger iPhones, but some people still user smaller phones (I know one girl who has a large iPad Pro and an iPhone SE, and she loves the niche her iPad mini 4 takes between those). I hope they upgrade the Mini, but I have a feeling it will go the way of some other popular products like (apparently) the SE itself, because they don't add enough to the bottom line compared to other alternatives.
 
For example, if you have a 12.9 inch Pro then there's no way you're using that to read books (well, maybe you are, but it's not ideal).
I do. It's ideal.

I'm currently reading an illustrated (Kindle in Motion) version of Bram Stoker's "Dracula" but also frequently use it like a propped up text book for reference when I'm working on the computer.
 
HO HO HO!

Doesn't say much for Face ID's popularity. Apparently way more than 55% of people still wanted the Home button after all. All in all, I'd say the huge winner was Touch ID.

Nah, Santa, it says more about how much people like to save $300, and the popularity of the big screen. If the X had two sizes available, like the 8, it would have won this race, even at the higher price.

I got the X, and Face ID is sublime, and I much prefer the button-free operation and the absence of huge bezels.

But I do miss the larger width of the plus-size phones and the larger text and photos it permits. I'll be upgrading to X-plus as soon as it's available.
 
Pleased to see the number of SE iPhones in there. That's quite a few sales in 2018 given the iPhone SE came out early in 2016 and has the same internals (sorta) as the 6 from 2015.

Fingers crossed Apple give us another mini iPhone. I'd love something in plastic too, all this metal in grey, different grey, more grey is getting awfully boring- I want the iPhone 5C plastic colours again.
 
I'm learning a great deal from these pro graphics creators. Today's lesson: If you randomly assign colors in a graph used to compare things that tend to come in pairs, it will make the data more difficult to grasp.

6 - bluish, 6S Plus - orangish
7 - purplish, 7 Plus - bluish
8 - orangish, 8 Plus - bluish
 
  • Like
Reactions: MartyvH and Marekul
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.