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Topic: iPhone

Apple iPhone 4S: 4 million in sales in first weekend

Summary: Apple sold more than four million iPhone 4S smartphones in the first weekend, more than double the amount for its predecessor, the iPhone 4.

Andrew Nusca

By for Between the Lines |

Call it a feat of Jobsian proportions.

Apple on Monday announced that it sold more than four million iPhone 4S smartphones in the first weekend. It arrived on Oct. 14 in the U.S., Canada, Australia, France, Germany and Japan.

It's the highest tally to date for the popular device, more than double the amount seen during launch weekend for the iPhone 4 and "the most ever for a phone," the Cupertino, Calif.-based company claims.

A few more data points from Apple:

  • To date, 25 million users are using its iOS 5 mobile operating system.
  • 20 million users have signed up for iCloud, the company's cloud-based media sharing service portfolio.

The iPhone 4S will be available in 22 more countries on Oct. 28 and another 70 countries by the end of the year, preparing Apple for a strong holiday (and Q4) showing.

Will natural speech recognition and a $199 entry price convince consumers to put an iPhone beneath the holiday tree? Only time will tell.

See also:

Topics: iPhone, Apple, Hardware, Mobility, Smartphones

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40 comments
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  • Wow, good job Apple

    Just goes to show you what a market with no competition looks like.
    toddybottom
    Reply Vote

    • RE: Apple iPhone 4S: 4 million in sales in first weekend

      I got my free black macbook at http://getamacboook.gu.ma/
      vikkigirlliee
      Reply Vote

    • RE: Apple iPhone 4S: 4 million in sales in first weekend

      @toddybottom
      No it proves that Apple is so cool and hip that they sell the same phone twice, with even bigger buzz.

      If I did not already have an Iphone 4, I would probably get the Iphone 4S.
      Bakabaka
      Reply Vote

  • wait...

    no negative spin on zdnet? here is a proposition for a headline: 5 million new iOS 5 users refuse to use iCloud! now, that's a headline!
    bannedfromzdnetagainandagain
    Reply Vote

    • There is some: look at 'narual speech recognition'

      @bannedfromzdnetagainandagain: since many Android phones do natural speech recognition, the use of such phrase in relation to Siri, which way beyond anything as basic as a mere speech recognition, is obvious attempt to negate the breakthrough AI UI, which became available by default on any device for the first time in the history exactly on iPhone 4S.
      DDERSSS
      Reply Vote

  • RE: Apple iPhone 4S: 4 million in sales in first weekend

    [i]Call it a feat of Jobsian proportions.[/i]

    We will call it a feat of average proportions. It was 4 million phones spread over 3 carriers. Also with the percentage of people on smart phones this number isn't looking as impressive.
    LoverockDavidson_-24231404894599612871915491754222
    Reply Vote

    • delusional

      @LoverockDavidson_ <br>lalalala, i can't hear you, i can't hear you!<br>take your fingers out of your ears. you're not a child anymore. just because you don't want something to happen, doesn't mean it isn't there.<br><br>4 million in one weekend. one weekend. by far the best selling phone on this planet, almost 150% more than the record breaking number of last year. <br><br>whom are you kidding?
      bannedfromzdnetagainandagain
      Reply Vote

      • RE: Apple iPhone 4S: 4 million in sales in first weekend

        @bannedfromzdnetagainandagain
        And more people are using smart phones now than previously. Look at the ratio and I'm betting its about the same.
        LoverockDavidson_-24231404894599612871915491754222
        Reply Vote

    • Smartphone market shows about 85% Y-Y growth, so 140% growth for iPhone

      @LoverockDavidson_: ... <b>is</b> impressive.
      DDERSSS
      Reply Vote

      • RE: Apple iPhone 4S: 4 million in sales in first weekend

        @DeRSSS
        Overall smart phone growth is up, which is why you are seeing a high number. Its not that impressive.
        LoverockDavidson_-24231404894599612871915491754222
        Reply Vote

      • How growing almost twice faster than the market is not impressive?

        @LoverockDavidson_

        If it would be 'the same', then iPhone 4S' sales would be 85% growth comparing to last year, not 140% growth.
        DDERSSS
        Reply Vote

    • Three carriers, yes, but...

      @LoverockDavidson_ Four million phones is four million phones. It's particularly impressive when you consider how many people were willing to upgrade out of cycle, switch carriers or even upgrade to smartphones completely for the device. Four million split across many carriers and countries, yes, but four million all the same. Is it mind-blowing? No. But for that many sold in three days, it's a result any smartphone manufacturer would accept.
      andrew.nusca
      Reply Vote

      • RE: Apple iPhone 4S: 4 million in sales in first weekend

        @andrew.nusca
        I just can't share your enthusiasm about this as I find it less than impressive. The only reason the numbers are up is because overall smart phone usage is up. Look at it from rations and how many people were using them previously and how many are using them now.
        LoverockDavidson_-24231404894599612871915491754222
        Reply Vote

      • RE: Apple iPhone 4S: 4 million in sales in first weekend

        @andrew.nusca Please don't try to use facts when talking to LD. If it's not a WinPhone (which I think STILL has not released it's numbers), it must not be doing well.
        THavoc
        Reply Vote

      • RE: Apple iPhone 4S: 4 million in sales in first weekend

        @andrew.nusca A raw number means nothing. It's like exclaiming 450 million Windows 7 licenses mean something HUGE when relatively speaking it's just par for the course with the % growth in PC industry. Tell us how the iPhone is increasing relative to the current competition, not the previous model!
        MSFTWorshipper
        Reply Vote

      • Not understanding something

        @andrew.nusca
        [i]It's particularly impressive when you consider how many people were willing to upgrade out of cycle, [b]switch carriers[/b] or even upgrade to smartphones completely for the device[/i]

        If it's on three major carriers, why would they need to switch carriers to get it? I can't see a Verizon customer leave to AT&T just to get the phone since Verizon's selling it too.

        Also, people have been upgrading to smartphones for sometime now, anyone interseted in getting one probally waited the couple of months to get the latest. (I was going that route with my wife, but we had to get the iPhone4 about 4 months ago as her feature phone died ahead of schedule :( )

        So was there really all that demand for the iPhone4S, or is it aboute average, with some people reading too much into it, comparing AT&T only numbers to todays?
        William Farrell
        Reply Vote

      • RE: Apple iPhone 4S: 4 million in sales in first weekend

        @MSFTWorshipper [i]Tell us how the iPhone is increasing relative to the current competition, not the previous model![/i]
        How about you list the competitors devices that have sold a quarter of that in the first weekend let alone anything that matches those sales.
        non-biased
        Reply Vote

      • RE: Apple iPhone 4S: 4 million in sales in first weekend

        @William Farrell With the draw of Sprints unlimited plans there very well could have been customers leaving AT&T & Verizon to get the 4S on Sprint.
        non-biased
        Reply Vote

    • RE: Apple iPhone 4S: 4 million in sales in first weekend

      @LoverockDavidson_

      If you say so, that's 3.95 million more than any Android money is likely to see in the same time frame and 3.5 million more than ALL Android phones combined in the same time frame.
      dhmccoy
      Reply Vote

    • You're clearly jealous

      But, there's hope! Who knows, by this time next year Microsoft might have sold 4 (million?) WP7's.
      ego.sum.stig
      Reply Vote
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