The first few days of sales of the new iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro seem a bit strange. After the opening of reservations on September 13, the data collected shows how the new devices are received. The truth is that sales seem to be below what Apple expected, at least for two of the models.
iPhone 16 Pro sales below expectations
This is not the expected scenario, but it is what is being shown by the well-known Ming Chi-Kuo. He revealed the information based on the analysis of shipping times indicated in the Apple Store, in addition to surveys carried out in the iPhone supply chain. It was found that, overall, sales of the iPhone 16 are 12.7% lower than those of the iPhone 15. The drop in demand for the “Pro” models appears to be the culprit.
Looking at the specific numbers, we can see that, in total, around 36.8 million reservations for the new devices were made over the first weekend of sales. Of these, 17.1 million were for the iPhone 16 Pro Max. Despite being a large number, which places the most expensive iPhone in the range as the best-selling, it represents a drop compared to the previous year's model of 16%.
iPhone 16 first weekend pre-order analysis: estimated total sales of about 37 million units; Pro series demand lower than expected
— Ming-Chi Kuo (@mingchikuo) September 15, 2024
iPhone 16 Plus's behavior is much better
The most surprising thing is that Apple's expectations were very different from what ended up happening. Before the launch, Apple produced 6 million units of the iPhone 16 Pro Max, 106% more than the iPhone 15 Pro Max. Despite this, sales were not consistent throughout the first few days of availability on the market.
The drop is even more notable in the case of the iPhone 16 Pro, as 27% fewer units were reportedly reserved compared to the iPhone 15 Pro. The analyst believes that the main reason for this decrease in reservations is the absence of Apple Intelligence features at the time of the phones' launch.
Apple may have to change strategy on this smartphone
But it’s not all bad news for Apple. The “basic” models of the family, the iPhone 16 and 16 Plus, saw their reservations increase over the first weekend. 10 and 48% to be exact, with the larger model benefiting the most. Despite this, “only” 2.6 million iPhone 16 Plus were reserved during the first weekend.
Given these results, the analyst believes that Apple will have to carry out aggressive promotional campaigns throughout 2025 to stimulate demand. This, coupled with the arrival of Apple Intelligence before the end of the year, could have a positive effect on sales of the new smartphone series.
Source: pplware.sapo.pt
