Meanwhile, iPads seem to be losing steam with fewer units sold this year.
In Q4, Apple sold 39.27 million iPhones, up from 33.78 million last year, proving CEO Tim Cook’s prediction that it would be the largest iPhone launch ever. While Apple’s Q4 financials were rosy, the product mix certainly tracked the overall market. The results for this quarter did include the recent iPhone 6 launch, but not those of the updated iPad line.
The legacy iPads sold fewer units year-over-year, with 12.32 million units sold in 2014 compared with 14.08 million sold in 2013. This also represents three straight quarters of sales decline for the tablet line – in fact, by revenue, the Mac line of computers outsold the iPads for the first time in years. The company is hoping that new inroads into the enterprise market will increase sales, but so far nothing has indicated that there is a stark turnaround any time soon.
Interestingly, Apple derived more than US$3.5 billion in accessory sales in Q4 alone. While that makes up just 8 percent of its revenue for the quarter, it is clear that the market for accessories – cases, covers, screen protectors, Bluetooth devices, and others – are certainly a growing opportunity.