iPhone Marks Fastest-Selling Launch in Verizon History

[aristotle]

I'm a mac guy through and through but thats debatable.

One could say thanks to brilliant marketing, iPhone has earned the perception of being the best phone out right now.

If you are only looking to talk and text, there are a lot of older dumb phone that will fit your needs but as far as smart phones are concerned, it is all about the software. You could have dual core and a 12MP camera phone but without an ecosystem to rival iOS, it would just be an incredible feature phone and mediocre smart phone.

After you get over the initial "glow" of the spec sheets and have to actually use the damn thing or start looking for apps that you want, the love for android quickly wears off as can be seen by the huge sales of the iPhone on Verizon which was one of the main bastions for Android.

People bought android phones because it was the best they could get on their carrier at the time.

 

[NoExpectations]

This is worth repeating.

I doubt anyone else could have achieved that.

It's all a show. No matter how many Verizon sold yesterday, they would have said "we sold out". They are holding back most of their stockpile for new customers on the 10th. If they truely sold out, why don't they tell us how many they had in stock, how many they sold, and how many they are getting for the 10th?

 

[rhett7660]

I'm comparing launches of OSes

Phones using the Android OS vs. The phone using iOS

I think its quite relevant; just like the comparison of computers sold with OS X vs. Windows is.

Why conflate? I think its relevant to ask which CDMA phone type sold more, iOS based iPhone vs Android based phones. Why add in iPod Touches and iPads that do not have a CDMA radio chipset?

Can you make up your mind please. First you say comparing OSes.... I mean isn't the iPod touch using iOS and so is the iPad? So now they have to be CDMA phones only. yeah ok.

 

[SchneiderMan]

Not surprising.. Everyone wants the iPhone.

 

[Rodimus Prime]

Then you need the sales figures from all iPod touches, iPads and iPhones.

Either compare OS to OS or handset to handset, can't have it both ways.

No I would say Phone OS (Android) vs Phone OS (iOS) is relevent. iPods really do not fit into that.
A lot of people I know own both iPod Touch and Android Phones. Reason being is for an iPod iOS is great for them but the draw backs of iOS kick in way to much for their taste of their phone.

What I see is some Apple fans scrambling to deal with the over hyped numbers really not looking as good as they want it to. As soon as someone looks at it logicly they see that the iPhone is not as big as the media makes it out to be. A lot of people have to settle with the iPhone instead of getting more choices for Android and getting closer to what they exactly want.

 

[Popeye206]

No I would say Phone OS (Android) vs Phone OS (iOS) is relevent. iPods really do not fit into that.
A lot of people I know own both iPod Touch and Android Phones. Reason being is for an iPod iOS is great for them but the draw backs of iOS kick in way to much for their taste of their phone.

What I see is some Apple fans scrambling to deal with the over hyped numbers really not looking as good as they want it to. As soon as someone looks at it logicly they see that the iPhone is not as big as the media makes it out to be. A lot of people have to settle with the iPhone instead of getting more choices for Android and getting closer to what they exactly want.

HUH???? You seem to live in your own world. It's not even debatable, the iPhone is the best selling smart phone on the market. Yes, there are lots of different Android based phones being sold, but no single phone even comes close to the sales numbers of the iPhone. Apple sells them as fast as they can make them... that's not hype. That's reality.

BTW... it's okay you like your Android phone... noting wrong with that. Different strokes for different folks. But at least be real.

 

[Rodimus Prime]

HUH???? You seem to live in your own world. It's not even debatable, the iPhone is the best selling smart phone on the market. Yes, there are lots of different Android based phones being sold, but no single phone even comes close to the sales numbers of the iPhone. Apple sells them as fast as they can make them... that's not hype. That's reality.

BTW... it's okay you like your Android phone... noting wrong with that. Different strokes for different folks. But at least be real.

well lets break this down in another way.
You have iPhone 16g and and 32g. That is 2 different selling numbers. If iPhone offered a 4in one as well it would drop the number of any single number by a fair amount.

Those are all different models in relating just to iPhone but shows you way no single Android phone will break the iPhone number because the sells of Android OS is split across multiple phones. The number of people who want Android are the same. iOS has a limited number of people who want them and right now they are split between 16g and 32g.

 

[redmac]

It's all a show. No matter how many Verizon sold yesterday, they would have said "we sold out". They are holding back most of their stockpile for new customers on the 10th. If they truely sold out, why don't they tell us how many they had in stock, how many they sold, and how many they are getting for the 10th?

Is it that hard to understand? They are sold out for the early launch. The figure was bigger than any previous Android launch figure, the pre-sale was open only for existing Verizon customers and it took them less than two hours in the middle of a week night. Can anything be more impressive than that?

If they put twice as many iPhones for pre-sale, they would be sold out easily. Maybe it would take 8 hours or a little more and they would sell them all. But Verizon wants new customers and they need to keep iPhones in stock for those new customers.

 

[kdarling]

... and this is with hardware that is essentially 8 months old... quite incredible actually.

Heh.

Think it's incredible for people to buy an 8 month old model? Not with Verizon customers.

Until fairly recently, we were very used to waiting that long to get the latest smartphone model approved and available to us... often long after even Sprint had a CDMA version.

This is just a throwback to those bad old days.

 

[Popeye206]

well lets break this down in another way.
You have iPhone 16g and and 32g. That is 2 different selling numbers. If iPhone offered a 4in one as well it would drop the number of any single number by a fair amount.

Those are all different models in relating just to iPhone but shows you way no single Android phone will break the iPhone number because the sells of Android OS is split across multiple phones. The number of people who want Android are the same. iOS has a limited number of people who want them and right now they are split between 16g and 32g.

Sorry man... you make no sense here. Sounds like you're grasping at straws.

BTW... the couple people I know with Android phones, did not seek them out. It was their only real choice other than a Blackberry on their network provider... both of them would rather have an iPhone but that was not an option for them at the time.

But you see, these are just normal non-geeky people... like the majority of people. Consumers who don't care about open systems or tinkering with their phone. Again... okay you do... but again... your response makes no sense. There are two iPhone models out there... iPhone4 which is the number 1 seller, and the iPhone 3G which is the number 3 seller. The Droid X in between the two. So even the outdated iPhone3G outsells most Android phones.

 

[Popeye206]

Heh.

Think it's incredible for people to buy an 8 month old model? Not with Verizon customers.

Until fairly recently, we were very used to waiting that long to get the latest smartphone model approved and available to us... often long after even Sprint had a CDMA version.

This is just a throwback to those bad old days.

What's funny... before the iPhone I never looked to see "how old" the phone I was about to buy was. It didn't matter... you bought it because you liked the keypad, or the interface, or whatever your reason was. Now we seem to be hung up on the fact that the model you're buying might be obsolete soon.

The way I look at it... who cares? If the phone works for you now... buy it. It's a good smart phone. One of (if not the) best one out there. No matter what you buy, you will be outdated by the time your contract is up.

 

[Rodimus Prime]

Sorry man... you make no sense here. Sounds like you're grasping at straws.

BTW... the couple people I know with Android phones, did not seek them out. It was their only real choice other than a Blackberry on their network provider... both of them would rather have an iPhone but that was not an option for them at the time.

But you see, these are just normal non-geeky people... like the majority of people. Consumers who don't care about open systems or tinkering with their phone. Again... okay you do... but again... your response makes no sense. There are two iPhone models out there... iPhone4 which is the number 1 seller, and the iPhone 3G which is the number 3 seller. The Droid X in between the two. So even the outdated iPhone3G outsells most Android phones.

Again you failed to see the point I was making. Not that I am surprised.

You have 2 iPhone4 models out there. 16g and 32g. Now people choose between those and get the one they like best. Android on many carriers you have tons of choices to choose between so the number sold is going to be split among those. It is not that hard to understand that simple logic.

 

[linux2mac]

Sorry man... you make no sense here. Sounds like you're grasping at straws.

BTW... the couple people I know with Android phones, did not seek them out. It was their only real choice other than a Blackberry on their network provider... both of them would rather have an iPhone but that was not an option for them at the time.

But you see, these are just normal non-geeky people... like the majority of people. Consumers who don't care about open systems or tinkering with their phone. Again... okay you do... but again... your response makes no sense. There are two iPhone models out there... iPhone4 which is the number 1 seller, and the iPhone 3G which is the number 3 seller. The Droid X in between the two. So even the outdated iPhone3G outsells most Android phones.

+1

All my friends that have Androids complain of it not working properly. The only time my iPhone doesn't work is when I turn it off - LOL

 

[nooaah]

I'm comparing launches of OSes

Phones using the Android OS vs. The phone using iOS

I think its quite relevant; just like the comparison of computers sold with OS X vs. Windows is.

It's actually irrelevant. Apple is a hardware company first. Google is only an opponent of theirs because they enable other hardware companies to compete. Same with Microsoft. They supply other hardware manufacturers with software. As a business, Apple is on a whole other level.

 

[Steelers7510]

I still strongly believe that the iphone 5 will be what the the 3Gs was compared to the 3G. I bought one yesterday and I am not worried at all. If the iphone 5 is that big if a deal i wil just sell my ip4 on ebay.

 

[TrumpetGuy]

It's actually irrelevant. Apple is a hardware company first. Google is only an opponent of theirs because they enable other hardware companies to compete. Same with Microsoft. They supply other hardware manufacturers with software. As a business, Apple is on a whole other level.

I'm glad someone finally said this. Apple is indeed a hardware company. Yes, they also produce software for their hardware, BUT this is because the integration makes for the best user experience when people use their Hardware.

The fact is that the iPhone 4 is the best selling Hardware as far as smartphones go. The OS isn't all that relevant

 

[BC2009]

I'm a mac guy through and through but thats debatable.

One could say thanks to brilliant marketing, iPhone has earned the perception of being the best phone out right now.

One could say that and certainly folks will have preferences and "best" depends on your rating system. Certainly, marketing can win you a popularity contest. However, the guys over at Engadget handle just about every device that comes to market. They reviewed the Verizon iPhone 4 just recently.

(Can you remember the last time they did a review of 7-month old phone being released on a new carrier? Neither can I. )

Anyway, to quote Engadget's review:

"...we think the design and build of the iPhone 4 is best in class by a longshot"

"...Apple and Verizon did the impossible: they made the best smartphone in America just a little bit better"

The emphasis on "best" above is mine, not theirs. So while it is debatable on an individual basis, it would seem iPhone 4 is both popular with the masses and getting the marks from the tech reviewers. Sounds like a good combination of an excellent device and excellent marketing.

 

[Mattsasa]

NO ****! I think we knew this on the 11th

 

[BC2009]

Or user experience and integration into the apple ecosystem. Naaaaaa that wouldn't make a good smart phone.

Before iPhone people go crazy. it's only ONE device. Android probably sold 9 billion when u combine all devices on initial launch.

Wow... 9 billion would be really impressive. Every person on the planet would have 1.7 Android phones -- and that would just be from the initial launch day. If you count total sales (not just launch day), we'd probably own like 5 of them -- including folks living in the jungles of South America and Africa or in the frozen desert of Antarctica. Even Steve Jobs would have several of them.



I'm guessing you meant 9 million.

 

[foodog]

I'm a mac guy through and through but thats debatable.

One could say thanks to brilliant marketing, iPhone has earned the perception of being the best phone out right now.

As a current EVO user and a former iPhone user I agree 100%. Had it not been for AT&T crappy network I would have never switched.

 

[mcmlxix]

I wonder how many At&t iPhone users switch just because of the hype after so many years. Apple does make things into some sort of big and magical event.

No Verizon for me:

1. I’m under contract with AT&T for another 14 months.
2. My phone is only 10 months old. Why would I replace it this soon?
3. AT&T’s signal strength, coverage, and customer service have been excellent for me.
4. Only 2 dropped calls…really.
5. Verizon’s plans are more expensive than comparable to my AT&T plan.

 

[Bonsai1214]

Apple can barely keep up with AT&T iphone production. supply will be tight in the next few months.

 

[aristotle]

Again you failed to see the point I was making. Not that I am surprised.

You have 2 iPhone4 models out there. 16g and 32g. Now people choose between those and get the one they like best. Android on many carriers you have tons of choices to choose between so the number sold is going to be split among those. It is not that hard to understand that simple logic.

Are you trying to be irritatingly pedantic or do you not understand the difference between different capacities and different models with differing features and capabilities? From a software development and even firmware point of view the 16 and 32g models are for all intents and purposes the same model with a different Flash storage configuration. They have the "SAME" firmware and the same functionality outside of differing storage capacity.

Now there are two models, a CDMA version and a GSM/HSPA iPhone 4 but again from the perspective of software developers, nothing really changes.

 

[Rodimus Prime]

Are you trying to be irritatingly pedantic or do you not understand the difference between different capacities and different models with differing features and capabilities? From a software development and even firmware point of view the 16 and 32g models are for all intents and purposes the same model with a different Flash storage configuration. They have the "SAME" firmware and the same functionality outside of differing storage capacity.

Now there are two models, a CDMA version and a GSM/HSPA iPhone 4 but again from the perspective of software developers, nothing really changes.

No I was trying to point out that it is not this one size fit all. If the iPhone was only able to be bought as a 16gig phone the total sells would be a little less than the total sells are now but not by much. Most of the people who got 32 gig would of settled for the 16 gig. The point I was trying to make with the Android phones and all the different models there is less settling required as you have more choices in what you want to have.

Want a larger screen, or a hardware keyboard you have both those choices along with a lot of others but still have the same OS.

Also on the developer front go look at Revo blog. They even said dealing with the fragmentation is not that hard or big of a deal for them over all. For the most part you let the OS deal with the different stuff.

 

[Richard1028]

Wonderful news.

Hurry up you Verizon kool-aide drinking lemmings - get off my AT&T network!

Come February 11, I'll be tethering 5 servers from my iphone.

Heh heh.