Falling Up
A massive sales increase of 128% last year vaulted Apple past Samsung to become the world’s #1 smartphone vendor.
Can you imagine how well Apple would have done if the iPhone 4S hadn’t been a flop?
ONE MORE THING: Does she work at all for the money? Not if we’re talking about Motorola, which Google is in the process of buying for $12 billion-with-a-b:
They shipped — shipped, not sold — 5.3 million smartphones in the quarter. As a reminder, Apple sold 37 million.
For the full year, Motorola shipped — shipped, not sold — 18.7 million smartphones. As a reminder, Apple sold 37 million smartphones last quarter.
They shipped — shipped, not sold — 200,000 tablets last quarter. TWO HUNDRED THOUSAND. As a reminder, Apple sold 15 million tablets.
For the year, Motorola shipped — shipped, not sold — 1 million tablets. As a reminder, Apple sold 15 million tablets last quarter.
We talked earlier this week about channel-stuffing — well, here it is in action again. What should frighten Google is how Moto was able to stuff its channels with comparatively little product. But a little is still a lot, when you can’t sell it for a profit.
“But a little is still a lot, when you can’t sell it for a profit.”
Let’s see, Chevy Volts, Solyndra, bullet-trains, etc, etc.
On a clear day Samsung can see first place.
Motorola used to be a good company, I suppose Google thinks they can be again. But then, Google also seems to be following in Microsoft’s footsteps.
Nothing wrong with following Microsoft.
They gave a standardized OS which in turn allowed for explosion of cheap and good PC compatible hardware ( eventually even Apple ended up using it because everything else was just too expensive)
Custom OS running on custom hardware is just so 1980s ….
iPhone/iPad both run a custom OS on custom hardware.
iPhone takes in almost two-thirds of all cellphone (not just smartphone) profits. There still exists no serious competitor to iPad 1,* much less the iPad 2 — and iPad 3 is due out soonish.
So… what was that again?
*Check pricing on eBay if you don’t believe me. Consumers would rather pay the same or more for a used iPad 1 than a new Android/Kindle/webOS/BlackBerry anything.
I just saw an article on Cnet that suggests there may be a bubble of sorts forming WRT iPhones, because of the contract discounts wireless carriers have to offer, suggesting that either the phones or the contracts will have to get more expensive in the not-so-distant future.
If that happens, I for one will likely opt for an Android phone when the time comes.
Um… What discounts?
iPhones sell at list price, with almost no exceptions. Carriers pay Apple more upfront per phone, but make up the difference because iPhone owners use a LOT more data. (See Verizon’s latest guidance for the former, and iOS usage stats for the latter.)
But let’s pretend for a moment that none of the above is true. Let’s pretend that carriers aren’t really making money selling high-price data plans to full-price phone buyers. It’s a stretch, but we’re pretending here. Apple accounts for two-thirds of all handset profits in the whole world. In oth words, should they eveer need to compete on price, Apple has plenty of margin to spare.
As an aside,, I can’t remember the last time I read anything pertinent on CNET.
My wife and I paid a good deal less than list for our iPhones because we signed a contract.
How did you get your iPhone?
If you paid $0 for a 3GS or $99 for a 4 or $199 (and up) for a 4S you paid list. Don’t be obtuse — everyone knows the difference between List and Unlocked, and hardly anyone in the US pays for Unlocked.
Occasionally — very occasionally — a provider or a retailer will discount an iPhone from the list price. But that comes out of their hide, not Apple’s. And they’ll still make it up somewhere (maybe on volume, but still most likely on data) or they wouldn’t offer the discount. But hardly anyone offers an iPhone discount, because hardly anyone ever has to.
So the question remains: Where is this bubble? Where is anyone, anywhere losing money selling iPhones?
Because until somebody puts up that data point, Apple’s profits and margins are under zero threat.
Got an off-slash for that?
Also, it seems almost cruel to mention that the top-of-the-line Android 4.0 phone debuted at $299 — a hundred dollar premium over the world’s best-selling iPhone 4S. (2nd and third place belong to the iPhone 4 and the iPhone 3GS. I assume the $299 Nexus isn’t even close to 4th place at that price.)
Again: Where is the price pressure?
Apple’s non-iOS computers have completely custom logic boards and ASICs– most certainly “custom hardware” by any measure, even though they do use commonly available components for memory, storage, video, processors and suchlike.
There’s a reason Apple innovated themselves to the top of the computing world, and at the heart of it is their total widget design philosophy. That is at complete odds with anything Microsoft has ever done.
(God I hate Firefox mobile…)
As I was saying before my browser’s over-aggressive backspace key ate my entire comment, the desktop PC market is a much more mature sector than the mobile device market. Arguably, there’s still time for an open-architecture model to emerge, but it’s questionable how much room such a model could actually claim.
“iPhone/iPad both run a custom OS on custom hardware.”
So did Commodore 64 in the 1980s ( with 30 + million units sold.)
It seemed like this was the way to go until MS/PC combo came along and killed that silly gathering of Ataris/Commodores with their inefficient custom hardware/OS combinations.
There is simply no comparison – a commodity hardware platform with tens of companies contributing their collective talents to advancing it will always win – it is really quite similar to central planning vs free markets.
The real question is if Android will end up being the PC of the 2010s or merely just another Atari and the real winner is still out there …
But Apple is already getting commodity-level pricing on its chip purchases. They were the #1 chip purchaser, based on volume, in the world last quarter. Hell, it’s been determined that they are driving the prices in the flash market. Nobody comes close to them in volume.
Yes, there is always the chance/opportunity for the Android market to drive this. But it simply doesn’t seem to be happening yet. Which really is odd, to me. And I’m not sure who else can compete. It’s not going to be Windows Mobile OS 7.5 For Non-Desktop or Cable Restricted Platforms of the Phone Variety. They’re a fart in the wind right now, and are having to pay massive kickbacks to the manufacturers and sales reps to get any volume at all.
I don’t dismiss your point. But Apple appears to be the 800# gorilla in the room right now. And I don’t see that changing any time soon.