Apple is gearing up for the launch of the iPhone 6 in September and has reportedly placed a massive order of between 70 and 80 million units â€" far more than any previous iPhone launch. As we’ve previously reported, the iPhone 6 will step up to a much larger 4.7-inch screen with a sapphire front panel â€" but curiously, there’s now a very solid rumor that there will also be an iPhone 6 with a 5.5-inch screen. At first blush, a 5.5-inch iPhone 6 sounds utterly crazy, but it makes a little more sense following Apple’s earnings call on Tuesday: Last quarter, Apple’s tablet sales dropped a massive 19% sequentially and 9% year-over-year. Perhaps fading iPad sales are the reason Apple is finally looking at large-screen phones?
Earlier in the week on July 22, at the same time as Microsoft in fact, Apple had its quarterly earnings call [1] â€" and it doesn’t look good for the iPad. While iPhone and Mac sales are up significantly (13% and 18% year-over-year), and overall revenues were a massive $37.4 billion (up 6% YOY), the iPad and iPad Mini are now clearly in a downwards trend. Last quarter, Apple shifted just 13.2 million iPads, down from 16.4 million last quarter and 26 million during the (always massive) 2013 holiday season. Apple’s tablet sales are definitely slowing down.
On the other hand, iPhone sales continue to grow and drive most of Apple’s utterly insane profits. While the 5C arrived with a bit of a whimper, Tim Cook says it’s doing better now. There is some data to suggest that the 5C, despite being a “flop,†has still outsold every other non-iPhone on the market, including Android flagships like the Galaxy S4. And now, following its (seemingly successful) first attempt at differentiation with the iPhone 5S and 5C, Apple is reportedly preparing to launch two versions of the iPhone 6, both with much larger screens than the current 4-inch iPhone. [Read: 4.7-inch iPhone 6 sapphire screen is super strong and flexible, but will it be impact resistant? ]
I still don’t quite believe that Apple is preparing to launch both a 4.7- and 5.5-inch version of the iPhone 6, but when the rumor mill and supply chain leaks a re this persistent, it’s rare for them to be wrong. With such dramatically larger screens, it’s clear that Apple finally wants to go toe-to-toe with Android flagships like the Samsung Galaxy S5 and HTC One M8. While the iPhone is still selling very well, so are Samsung’s Galaxy smartphones (the Galaxy S5 sold 11 million units in its first month of availability). With a 4.7-inch or 5.5-inch screen, Apple will be hoping that it can significantly boost the iPhone sales figures â€" and you know what? I think it’s a very savvy move.
The key factor here, which few people seem to be discussing, is that the standard 4-inch iPhone 5S isn’t going away . With the release of the 5S and 5C, Apple was testing the waters for a family of iPhones â€" and now, with that test a success, the company now feels confident in further differentiating the lineup into a 4-inch phone, a cheaper 4-inch phone, and two larger-screen phones for the tens of millions of people who want a bigger screen.What’s always puzzled me, though, is the persistent rumor of both a 4.7- and 5.5-inch iPhone 6. Wouldn’t it make more sense to have a 4-inch iPhone 6 for Apple’s core, small-handed clientele, and a 4.7-inch iPhone 6 for Android converts? There could be a 4-inch iPhone 6, I suppose, and maybe even a plastic-backed 4-inch iPhone 6 â€" so, four new phones in total â€" but we’re still left with one big question: What’s the target market of the 5.5-inch iPhone 6?
The phablet market, of course. After all, if Jony Ive and co finally agreed to design a 4.7-inch iPhone to compete with the Galaxys of the world, why not also do a 5 .5-inch iPhone to take down the Galaxy Note and other phablets? It makes even more sense if you factor in the decreasing iPad sales, too.
The release of the iPhone 5C opened the floodgate for iPhone differentiation. Next up: Bigger screens.
Clearly, with the successful launch of the iPhone 5C, Apple has finally given up on the monolithic one-size-fits-all prescriptive approach for the iPhone â€" and now the flood gates have opened. Before you know it, there’ll be an iPhone Mini, an iPhone Maxi 6C, and an iPhone Air. And Apple’s revenues will go through the roof.
And then, after the dust has settled, we’ll all be left wondering when Apple will finally release an iWatch , i TV , or some other new product that isn’t some acquired Beats headphones .
Links
- ^ Apple had its quarterly earnings call (www.apple.com)
- ^ SCAVidsHD (www.youtube.com)
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