Strong Mac, iPad and iPhone Sales Boost Apple‘s Profit
Apple posted a net profit of $3.25 billion for its third business quarter, driven by robust Mac, iPhone and iPad sales. The gadget maker said Mac sales were up 33 percent year over year to a record 3.47 million for the quarter, even as it outgrew the global market in both the desktop and portable categories.
Though Apple increased its iPhone sales 61 percent to 8.4 million in the quarter, this was in line with IDC’s expectations. However, the company’s shipment of 3.27 million iPads exceeded the 3.2 million forecast from Piper Jaffray.
“It was a phenomenal quarter that exceeded our expectations all around, including the most successful product launch in Apple’s history with iPhone 4,” said Apple CEO Steve Jobs. “iPad is off to a terrific start, more people are buying Macs than ever before, and we have amazing new products still to come this year.”
Killing the ‘Dream Phone’ Myth
Apple said it sold more than 1.7 million iPhone 4s during the quarter in the initial five countries where it launched. And moving forward, the company expects iPhone 4 sales to benefit from the iPhone distribution agreements that Apple already has with 154 carriers in 88 countries.
The iPhone 4′s headline-making antenna problem didn’t impact Apple’s latest financial results, since the new model didn’t start shipping until the end of the quarter. However, IDC Research Manager Francisco Jeronimo noted that the issue does kill the myth that the iPhone is perfect and better than any other smartphone. “For most consumers there was no other ‘dream phone,’ but now they may consider other devices,” Jeronimo said.
Jeronimo expects iPhone upgrades to slow since users don’t want to buy a high-end device with reception problems. “In a recent survey, IDC found out that 66 percent of iPhone owners are delaying their purchase of the…
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