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U.S. Carriers Still Struggling to Meet iPhone 4S Demand
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I wonder if Apple will hit 40 million iPhone units this quarter. Including the 4s, 4, and 3GS. That would completely decimate the current earnings estimates
Hats off to the Apple team for an amazing, worldwide rollout across so many countries and carriers. Very impressive. Steve would be proud!
I wonder if Apple will hit 40 million iPhone units this quarter. Including the 4s, 4, and 3GS. That would completely decimate the current earnings estimates
Hats off to the Apple team for an amazing, worldwide rollout across so many countries and carriers. Very impressive. Steve would be proud!
What I don't understand is how Samsung manages to meet demand for many different models (and they sell more phones than Apple), but Apple is unable to meet demand?
Shortages are always the result of a shortfall in production. That's why they're called shortages.
Part of marketing 101 is to make consumer believe a product is popular (of course, this product is popular). Apple and the mobile companies benefit from this news.
Not like people who want the iPhone badly won't wait for it.
Not like people who want the iPhone badly won't wait for it.
That's a very good question... especially since Apple has such a huge and controlling grasp of the supply chain... I suppose aluminum and glass devices might be a bit harder or slower to pump out compared to plastic phones, but still...
and Apple being a hardware company means that most of their revenue comes from the devices themselves (damn you apple tax!), so they'd want to produce as many devices as possible... But, I suppose some of the disasters and problems with countries and factories in asia might have something to do with this as well... maybe?
A combination of factors perhaps...
I would be very surprised if they did not manage to set a new record, given that they are now targeting more price points than ever.
How many Android devices are fighting for the same money at each price point? How many iOS devices are fighting for the same money at each price point? If Apple sold as many variants per point, what would be the end result? Would every Apple device still beat out every Android device? Of course not.
You're all over the place with your Android v. iOS outbursts. Pick a side of the argument and stick with it. :- )
How many Android devices are fighting for the same money at each price point? How many iOS devices are fighting for the same money at each price point? If Apple sold as many variants per point, what would be the end result? Would every Apple device still beat out every Android device? Of course not.
You're all over the place with your Android v. iOS outbursts. Pick a side of the argument and stick with it. :- )
I think adding to this is that Samsung's 24M smartphones in a year include a fairly large number of a variety of older phones. In comparison, Apple's sales are more heavily concentrated on their newest product. My understanding is that for most of these kinds of products, manufacturing yields go up over time from the time of launch (because quality kinks that produce bad product or shut a line down get cleared up, and typically also because some components get more sources over time).
The iPhone 4 and 3GS are both available without wait per Apple's website. I don't know what kind of volume the hottest Samsung phone sells in (e.g. this new ICS Nexus), but I'm guessing that individual model (as opposed to all of the models together) has quite a bit lower volume than the 4S does.
Let's see now: no redesigned form factor, no "5" in the name, and it's already sold over 5 million units in the span of 5 weeks since it's debut launch. Yeah, the iPhone 4S is a flop just as many predicted.
Find five people who made such a prediction and that simultaneously and explicitly stated that they did not think the device would sell like butter.
You have to remember, the people who called the 4S a flop are pretty much the same crowd that is certain that Apple could put out pretty much anything, call it magical, and still sell millions.
This story is bogus for me. I ordered my black AT&T iPhone 4S and it said shipping was 1-2 weeks.
I received mine in 4 days from China.
I received mine in 4 days from China.
I preordered 2 x 64GB iPhone 4S in black on the first night of pre-orders and got them on the first day. I am glad I did. So far the phone has been awesome and a great replacement to the iPhone 3GS.
With each new iPhone model, Apple manages to get increased demand for the device and they manage to maintain the most highly demanded device for the life of the phone. If they hold to form, the demand for the 4S should be solid through the iPhone 5 (or iPhone 6 release -- whatever they decide to call it when then release iOS 6).
I think the next iPhone needs to be a real game-changer though. The competition is starting to catch up on many things Apple is doing and finally filling some gaping holes that have been there for years (e.g.: Google Music). Apple needs to blow Siri out of the water in some major way and bring something game-changing to the table with the next iPhone. They usually do a pretty good job of changing the game the minute the competition figures out how to play the game Apple is playing. If the next iPhone is significantly better then I can look forward to upgrading when the "S" model comes out a year later as that is my current upgrade cycle: iPhone every two years with contract expiration and iPad every year with sale of old iPad.
It would be very interesting if Apple held the top-three spots for device sales with three different iPhone models. The logic has always been that Apple only holds the top spot or two because there are only two iOS devices. Now there are three, so unless the market share expands for Apple one of their devices should get dethroned at some point. Watching these statistics might be telling.
With each new iPhone model, Apple manages to get increased demand for the device and they manage to maintain the most highly demanded device for the life of the phone. If they hold to form, the demand for the 4S should be solid through the iPhone 5 (or iPhone 6 release -- whatever they decide to call it when then release iOS 6).
I think the next iPhone needs to be a real game-changer though. The competition is starting to catch up on many things Apple is doing and finally filling some gaping holes that have been there for years (e.g.: Google Music). Apple needs to blow Siri out of the water in some major way and bring something game-changing to the table with the next iPhone. They usually do a pretty good job of changing the game the minute the competition figures out how to play the game Apple is playing. If the next iPhone is significantly better then I can look forward to upgrading when the "S" model comes out a year later as that is my current upgrade cycle: iPhone every two years with contract expiration and iPad every year with sale of old iPad.
It would be very interesting if Apple held the top-three spots for device sales with three different iPhone models. The logic has always been that Apple only holds the top spot or two because there are only two iOS devices. Now there are three, so unless the market share expands for Apple one of their devices should get dethroned at some point. Watching these statistics might be telling.
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Breakdown, please?
(i don't think the nexus is their hottest device, really. SII probably is).
On a semi-related note. The past few years i've grown accustomed to reading every day several articles in one way or another relating to the latest iPhone. This time around... not so much. In fact, its been quiet to the degree of me noticing it, which says quite a lot in itself. I think this is the most serious issue as far as the iPhone 4S being considered a dud (or rather, not meeting very high expectations). Less buzz leaves an opening for something else to buzz about, and once that happens on a large scale, network effects tend to kick in with sheep behavior following in its trails.
For the sake of competition i really hope Apple does something radical in the next 6-12 months. W8 is fast approaching and will snag a significant share by sheer force and the massive gravity the platform already enjoys. Siri is certainly one step, but i'd like to see them take things even further.
Addendum: and as i finished that post off my MBA went nuts again (kernel_task at +300% for no reason at all). sigh. guess i shouldn't have talked negatively about apple and apple products on an apple computer. good thing i only have to send it to the repair shop one more time before having a right to get a replacement unit.
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And? Are you going to dig a little deeper? You're inches away from the grand prize.
What you've posted means that a) none of Apple's competitors can produce a phone that on its own, singly, can equal the sheer quality of build, design, and User Experience of the iPhone, and b) Apple's competitors are unable to do so (since most of them in philosophy and practice are the polar opposite of Apple), and they have no choice but to compete via a horizontal business model which = volume-pushing at all price points an ocean of devices that run different versions of a universally-licensed operating system.)
Eric T. Mole took great crib notes. But Google + HTC + Samsung + Motorola + ZTE + Huawei + upward of a dozen manufacturers and lord knows how many junk phone makers that barely anyone's heard of, are not Apple. Not even close.
Plus, all Google cares about is an electronic device as a vehicle for ads. Since they saw the smart phone market was going to explode and Schmidt already did his "investigations" of the iPhone, the smart thing to do was to get on board the smartphone train, with a horizontal business model as their only option for any success (as if an ad-peddler gives a damn about hardware anyway.)
And it shows. No matter how much volume Google and OEMs can push, an unweeded garden will remain an unweeded garden. By default.
That, is what's going on.
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BS. It's a simple Supply-Demand model. If there is a demand and seller can't meet that demand, it's called supply shortage as in production shortage. Demand outweighs supply due to shortage in production.
Maybe the new Androids like the Galaxy Nexus will soften the demand for the 4S?
Sent from my decrepit DROID X.. Upgrading to my first iphone soon.
Wow. I placed the order for a 16 gb white iPhone 4S yesterday morning and it just arrived 5 minutes ago.
I placed the order online with AT&T-I had no luck at the Apple retail store. Even the AT&T website estimated 14-21 days before shipping.
I placed the order online with AT&T-I had no luck at the Apple retail store. Even the AT&T website estimated 14-21 days before shipping.
It is looking very likely there will not be supply-demand balance in time for "Black Friday" this Thanksgiving in the USA. As a traditional sales spike period one wonders which retailers will benefit as a result.
AAPL is leaving money on the table. This is fairly new to them but the scale of it this time around is associated with the sheer success of the product itself.
I suspect essentially all prospective buyers will time-shift their purchase, however.
Rocketman
AAPL is leaving money on the table. This is fairly new to them but the scale of it this time around is associated with the sheer success of the product itself.
I suspect essentially all prospective buyers will time-shift their purchase, however.
Rocketman
Not necessarily. There can be a shortage because retailers don't order enough phones even though the manufacturer produced enough. Which might be why this thread is about *carrier* backlogs and not shortages at the Apple store.
21 days...
The phrasing of the quotation is kind of strange "...three weeks [at Verizon]...compares with...21 days at AT&T".
Unless my math is wrong, three weeks == 21 days.
The phrasing of the quotation is kind of strange "...three weeks [at Verizon]...compares with...21 days at AT&T".
Unless my math is wrong, three weeks == 21 days.
ATT 32gb White 4s ordered 15th arrives 22nd
When I checked my eligibility to upgrade awhile ago, November 30th was the date I could renew at the subsidized price. Tuesday I decided to check again, and lo and behold I was eligible to upgrade now. I ordered Tuesday Nov 15th, it shipped last night, the 17th in China, and is scheduled for delivery next Tuesday the 22nd, although I expect it on Monday. Original delivery dates were Nov 29th or Dec 5th.
When I checked my eligibility to upgrade awhile ago, November 30th was the date I could renew at the subsidized price. Tuesday I decided to check again, and lo and behold I was eligible to upgrade now. I ordered Tuesday Nov 15th, it shipped last night, the 17th in China, and is scheduled for delivery next Tuesday the 22nd, although I expect it on Monday. Original delivery dates were Nov 29th or Dec 5th.
Nobody cares about the Nexus save for tech blogs. It's just one more Android phone in a sea of them.