- Apple shared that it has shipped its 3 billionth iPhone during its 3rd fiscal quarter earnings call.
- It took the company only four years to reach its 3rd billion iPhones sold, compared to 5 years for the second billion.
- When asked whether other devices might replace the iPhone, Tim Cook said that they would be complementary rather than a replacement.
Apple recently held its third fiscal quarter (second calendar quarter) earnings call, during which the company announced that it has now shipped its 3 billionth iPhone. Since the launch of iPhone in 2007, it has taken 18 years for Apple to reach this milestone.
During the earnings call (report), Apple CEO Tim Cook and CFO Kevan Parekh shared insights into device sales, where it was revealed that last year’s iPhone 16 models were popular among users upgrading to a new iPhone. Cook mentioned that the iPhone 16 sales increased to “strong double digits” in comparison to iPhone 15 sales.
It seems Apple’s strong push to upgrade to the iPhone 16 for Apple Intelligence worked in its favor. This comes despite the criticism the Cupertino giant faced for misleading marketing around Apple Intelligence features, as those features didn’t arrive or meet users’ expectations.
Apple’s Senior Vice President of Marketing, Greg Joswiak, also shared a post on X celebrating the milestone.
A billion is a big number, and it took Apple only 4 years to reach 3 billion iPhone sales. That’s faster than the 5 years it took to go from 1 to 2 billion. But it seems that the 4th billion might take longer, especially as the tech landscape might move in a different direction in the coming years.
Recently, Mark Zuckerberg said that AI glasses are the future, and those without them will be at a disadvantage. When CNBC asked Tim Cook whether AI devices, like the one being developed by Jony Ive and Sam Altman, could replace the iPhone, Cook responded that he believes such devices will complement the iPhone, not replace it.
