4 ms·

What's the reason for the iPhone sales shrinking? Cheaper competition has been around for many years.

by Touche 11y ago

parasubvert 11y ago
Smartphone saturation - the whole market is slowing, though particularly in the US and China where iPhone marketshare or growth is strong. http://www.pcworld.com/article/3027008/smartphone-growth-at-lowest-on-concerns-about-global-economy-saturation-in-china.html http://www.pcworld.com/article/3027008/smartphone-growth-at-... http://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2015/10/29/smartphones-saturation-millennials-pew-research/74805506/ http://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2015/10/29/smartphones-sa... http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/mobile-phones/11812322/smartphone-sales-in-china-fall-says-gartner.html http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/mobile-phones/11812322... While the iPad seems to have stalled on its own significantly, this doesn't seem to be an iPhone-specific trend (yet)
TheOtherHobbes 11y ago
No new markets, coupled with lack of upgrades. If you have a 5, there's no compelling need to buy a 6x because from a user pov it's just more of the same. Under Cook, Apple has iterated on faster/thinner/bigger/smaller/blingier, and there's been no significant original thinking. The execution is great, in a slightly wobbly way, but what's being executed has become formulaic, mundane, and unexciting.
- Touche 11y ago
  Ok, not arguing just trying to understand better. Surely people are still upgrading. Perhaps it's less frequent? Like, now people are waiting their full upgrade period (or longer) whereas before many upgraded frequently?
  - JoshGlazebrook 11y ago
    We've also seen the shift away from 2-year contracts here in the USA. People are now aware that phones actually cost $600+ and are either paying full price, or monthly installments to pay off the $600 phone they bought.
    - Touche 11y ago
      Yeah, that's an interesting observation. I've long thought that Apple benefited from the 2-year contract model more than any other manufacturer. The 2-year contract hides the actual cost of the phone, so an iPhone sells for $199 just like an LG. Who buys a Honda when a Mercedes costs the same? Buying a phone for its real price puts the cost/benefit front and center to the consumer. Maybe an iPhone isn't worth an extra $200 after all? This puts Apple in a bind as they either have to drop the phones price or provide greater value for their price point.
- ZenoArrow 11y ago
  > "Under Cook, Apple has iterated on faster/thinner/bigger/smaller/blingier, and there's been no significant original thinking." This is lazy thinking, based on Jobs being an 'innovator' and Cook being focused on refinement. What exactly makes the iPad more innovative than, let's say, the Apple Watch?
  - Touche 11y ago
    Turns out nothing, but somehow Jobs was able to convince you that by not owning an iPad you were missing out on something big.
deleted 11y ago
[deleted]
mrpippy 11y ago
It's shrinking (slightly) year-over-year because the iPhone 6 was a blockbuster--people were waiting for larger-screen iPhones and jumped to upgrade when the 6 came out. The 6 was also supply-constrained which pushed some of those sales into the year-ago quarter. The 6s has done fine, but is not the anomaly that the 6 was. Wall Street will react violently to all this, but I think Apple and the iPhone business are still fundamentally healthy and sound.
batbomb 11y ago
The same reason why PC sales are shrinking; the reasons for upgrading every year are much less compelling, and old phones are still pretty adequate.

What's the reason for the iPhone sales shrinking? Cheaper competition has been around for many years.

by Touche 11y ago

What's the reason for the iPhone sales shrinking? Cheaper competition has been around for many years.

Smartphone saturation - the whole market is slowing, though particularly in the US and China where iPhone marketshare or growth is strong. http://www.pcworld.com/article/3027008/smartphone-growth-at-lowest-on-concerns-about-global-economy-saturation-in-china.html http://www.pcworld.com/article/3027008/smartphone-growth-at-... http://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2015/10/29/smartphones-saturation-millennials-pew-research/74805506/ http://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2015/10/29/smartphones-sa... http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/mobile-phones/11812322/smartphone-sales-in-china-fall-says-gartner.html http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/mobile-phones/11812322... While the iPad seems to have stalled on its own significantly, this doesn't seem to be an iPhone-specific trend (yet)

TheOtherHobbes 11y ago

No new markets, coupled with lack of upgrades. If you have a 5, there's no compelling need to buy a 6x because from a user pov it's just more of the same. Under Cook, Apple has iterated on faster/thinner/bigger/smaller/blingier, and there's been no significant original thinking. The execution is great, in a slightly wobbly way, but what's being executed has become formulaic, mundane, and unexciting.

Touche 11y ago
Ok, not arguing just trying to understand better. Surely people are still upgrading. Perhaps it's less frequent? Like, now people are waiting their full upgrade period (or longer) whereas before many upgraded frequently?
- JoshGlazebrook 11y ago
  We've also seen the shift away from 2-year contracts here in the USA. People are now aware that phones actually cost $600+ and are either paying full price, or monthly installments to pay off the $600 phone they bought.
  - Touche 11y ago
    Yeah, that's an interesting observation. I've long thought that Apple benefited from the 2-year contract model more than any other manufacturer. The 2-year contract hides the actual cost of the phone, so an iPhone sells for $199 just like an LG. Who buys a Honda when a Mercedes costs the same? Buying a phone for its real price puts the cost/benefit front and center to the consumer. Maybe an iPhone isn't worth an extra $200 after all? This puts Apple in a bind as they either have to drop the phones price or provide greater value for their price point.
ZenoArrow 11y ago
> "Under Cook, Apple has iterated on faster/thinner/bigger/smaller/blingier, and there's been no significant original thinking." This is lazy thinking, based on Jobs being an 'innovator' and Cook being focused on refinement. What exactly makes the iPad more innovative than, let's say, the Apple Watch?
- Touche 11y ago
  Turns out nothing, but somehow Jobs was able to convince you that by not owning an iPad you were missing out on something big.

deleted 11y ago

[deleted]

mrpippy 11y ago

It's shrinking (slightly) year-over-year because the iPhone 6 was a blockbuster--people were waiting for larger-screen iPhones and jumped to upgrade when the 6 came out. The 6 was also supply-constrained which pushed some of those sales into the year-ago quarter. The 6s has done fine, but is not the anomaly that the 6 was. Wall Street will react violently to all this, but I think Apple and the iPhone business are still fundamentally healthy and sound.

batbomb 11y ago

The same reason why PC sales are shrinking; the reasons for upgrading every year are much less compelling, and old phones are still pretty adequate.