An Apple Inc. employee shows the iPhone 4, June 7, 2010. (Photo Credit should Read /AFP/Getty Images)
Reuters | Sales of Apple Inc’s latest iPhone blew away expectations in its first
day on the market despite shortages and an embarrassing online ordering
glitch that thwarted many shoppers.
Apple shares rose nearly 3 percent on Wednesday after it announced sales
of more than 600,000 iPhone 4s, a record for just a single day of
pre-orders. That put the device on track to surpass sales of its
previous iPhone models as well as its iPad tablet computer, and sounded a
strong challenge to rivals like Nokia Corp, which warned of
weaker-than-expected sales at its phones unit.
But Apple apologized Wednesday for having to halt sales temporarily
after the surprising volume of online interest overloaded order and
approval systems and supplies ran out.
Apple’s website said Wednesday afternoon that products ordered then would be shipped by July 14, three weeks after the phone’s scheduled June 24 launch in stores and slower than the July 2 shipment promised earlier in the day. The site was still slow Wednesday, making it unclear if orders were going through.
The phone’s exclusive U.S. carrier AT&T Inc said it had halted pre-orders and that sales will resume as soon as inventory becomes available.
The Apple faithful appeared unconcerned. Analysts said the new iPhone would likely surpass sales of the last model, about 1 million units of which moved in its first three days.
One analyst said sales of the device could reach 10 million per quarter, once Apple can meet demand.
“At some point in the next three to four months they’ll catch up. That’s when they’ll start hitting the 10 million per quarter mark,” Hapoalim Securities analyst Kevin Hunt said.
“There is probably enough demand (to hit that number) in the third quarter but there’s probably not enough supply.”
Another analyst, Shaw Wu of Kaufman Bros, said his 8 million estimate for the quarter is probably conservative.
Some other analysts have raised concerns that Apple supply shortages — which caused a delay in the international launch of the iPad, for instance — would drive impatient buyers to rivals.
Apple and AT&T have incurred several recent technical and public relations embarrassments, including a security breach on the iPad that exposed email addresses of public figures, and an investigation into a missing iPhone prototype.
AT&T also said it received complaints that potential iPhone 4 customers were seeing other customers’ data on its website. It did not comment on this in Wednesday’s statement.
Apple unveiled the slimmer, $199 iPhone 4 last week, kicking off its fastest-ever global product roll-out to try to stay a step ahead of rivals like Google Inc in a red-hot smartphone market.
The device boasts a higher-quality screen and longer battery life, video chat via Wi-Fi, and a gyroscope sensor for improved gaming.
VERIZON ON THE HORIZON?
Shares of Apple, still hovering near a lifetime high, closed up 2.9 percent at $267.25 on Nasdaq. AT&T slipped 0.08 percent to $25.52 on the New York Stock Exchange.
AT&T said orders of the iPhone 4 were 10 times higher in their first day than for the iPhone 3GS on its launch day last year.
It said it chalked up more than 13 million visits to its website Tuesday, including customers checking to see if they were eligible to upgrade to a new phone. It said eligibility checks were three times its previous record for a single day.
Hudson Square Research analyst Todd Rethemeier said the sales numbers were good news for AT&T, especially because of widespread expectations that bigger rival Verizon Wireless, a venture of Verizon Communications Inc and Vodafone Group Plc, will soon be able to sell iPhones too.
“It means they’re locking up customers into new two year contracts. Nobody knows when Verizon’s going to the iPhone, but there’s a lot of speculation this will happen.” he said. “Anything AT&T can do to lock up customers now is a good thing.”
Rodman & Renshaw analyst Ashok Kumar said the technical snafus were more of a black eye for AT&T than Apple, and reinforced his expectation for a Verizon iPhone late this year. He does not see the problems helping rivals who make phones powered by the Android software from Google.
“People who can’t get their phones today, they’re not going to go to Android. They’ll just come back tomorrow and try to buy the iPhone,” he said.
AT&T said the availability of its inventory would determine whether it could resume taking orders. Apple apologized to frustrated would-be buyers and asked them to “try again” online and in stores once the phone is in stock.
“We apologize to everyone who encountered difficulties, and hope that they will try again … once the iPhone 4 is in stock,” Apple said in a statement.
People are so stupid. So sucked in to the consumerism. Why don’t you all start getting a life beyond what kind of cell phone you have.
Next year Apple will come out with a newer version, and dumb *** people will wait in line for that one as well. You will never be able to leave ATT if you keep signing a new contract ever year, just to have a newer version. Keep making that money Steve Jobs!
With all the new people on that already oversaturated system this will not be good for making phone calls on the ATT network-imo. Keep following the upgrade king-Steve Jobs.
“People are so stupid. So sucked in to the consumerism. Why don’t you all start getting a life beyond what kind of cell phone you have.”
You’re absolutely right . . . but I have to have one because I’ll look so cool walking around with it.
“People are so stupid. So sucked in to the consumerism. Why don’t you all start getting a life beyond what kind of cell phone you have.”
Its called capitalism you moron. Advertising and ingenuity create demand, people keep their jobs, consumers are happy. I would text you this message, but you cant get texts on that rotary dial land line of yours.
Actually, it isn’t “consumerism” as you say. It’s not just a piece of bling to impress others. These phones and their new features make me more productive and less tethered to the office…in short RICHER AND HAPPIER. I drive a 8 year old car and hang on to my clothes until they’re rags, so I care little for status. THESE PHONES HAVE CHANGED MY LIFE FOR THE BETTER and I always want the latest one, because it makes my life that much more productive and that much happier. So you hang on to your old Motorola RAZR while I’m out on my boat on Lake Geneva conducting business with this amazing device.
It’s the ultimate capitalist scene; people standing in line to give you their money. Who else can pull this off so well?
It’s Apple and other cell phone industries making us think that we need all this crap. We got by just fine 10 years ago when we didn’t have all this crap. We’re just falling for it and thinking that our life is much better with it. In fact I bet we’re all much more stressed out now that we have our work email wherever we go. It’s called leaving your work at work, and spending your vacation and time at home with your family instead of being distracted by your phone. No one is that important that they constantly need to be on the phone. We have become addicted to our cell phones, and it’s not a good thing.
Steve Jobs gets a lot of resentment from the public, but look at the impact he has had on Apple, and the impact on society and business, and you have to admit he is a genius.
After creating the company with Wozniak, he leaves, then returns to create the iPod, iTunes, iPhone, and now iPad.
Would all his detractors prefer if those products had come from Far Eastern companies?
“Actually, it isn’t “consumerism” as you say. It’s not just a piece of bling to impress others. These phones and their new features make me more productive and less tethered to the office…in short RICHER AND HAPPIER. I drive a 8 year old car and hang on to my clothes until they’re rags, so I care little for status. THESE PHONES HAVE CHANGED MY LIFE FOR THE BETTER and I always want the latest one, because it makes my life that much more productive and that much happier. So you hang on to your old Motorola RAZR while I’m out on my boat on Lake Geneva conducting business with this amazing device”.
WOW!There is so much wrong with this statement. If you really think “richer is happier” then you are clueless. So you can keep on being laughed at by Steve Jobs as he is making you all look like morons. You can enjoy “conducting business” on your boat in Lake Geneva while I will be enjoying my family on my boat in Lake Geneva and we will see who truly is “richer”
ST im pretty sure that thats what he meant…he can go have a good time with his family and friends on a boat in lake geneva and if he has to take care of work he can do it rather quickly while relaxing. and scm we did not do just fine 10 years ago because we barely had email 10 years ago or used less internet…we had to try and find bars with phones bigger than the ones now with less capabilities…just because someone has to use their phone for work does not mean they are addicted to using cell phones…i have to guesses to what kind of person you are… 1. old and dont know much better about the availabilities of the cell phone or just dont know how to use it 2. never had a smart phone to really see how much easier and better it is compared to the competition…i am in my mid 20s working for the rest of my life in a business and had to go without being able to access the internet or anything from my phone for a month and to be completely honest i felt as if i was lost in the world
Whoever claimed that he can go to lake Geneva and work from his iPhone:
Wake up and smell the coffee. Besides being able to do everything iPhone does, it is good with email exchange and it can multitask!
1. – iPhone has never been known for being god with email exchange servers. So, good luck with your corporate email on that boat!
2. – iPhone and Android phones are for end-consumers. Ask your system administrator at work.
3. – most of the people who SERIOUSLY work from distance use BlackBerry phones, not iPhones.
What a ragged, illogical collection of clichés and pointless hate!
So few of these comments deal with fact or personal experience, but with childish name-calling and oversimplification.
Presumably these are edited for substance. If they aren’t, they ought to be! Aren’t newspapers sources of information any longer? Most of the above are merely childish name calling, not thoughtful reflection.
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