Apple’s newest iPhone appears to be a hit with consumers.
Apple Inc.’s (NASDAQ:AAPL) latest iPhone (known as the iPhone 11) hit retail stores on Friday and early sales figures suggest more people than expected were keen to buy one.
Pre-orders of the phone were stronger than expected, according to Apple, and long lines snaked around Apple’s flagship store on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan as people waited to get into the gleaming glass cube and buy the new iPhone 11. Apple Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook was onsite in New York for the iPhone 11’s official launch.
Apple shares rose less than 1% Friday morning to $222.02, valuing the company at just over $1 trillion U.S. The new iPhone faced some hurdles heading into its annual revamp. Sales of the iconic smartphone have declined in the past three quarters, as prices crept above $1,000 U.S. and people hung onto their current models longer. A lack of revolutionary features on this year’s model could keep some fans holding out until 2020, when significantly faster 5G networks and a revamped design will be unveiled.
But some early reports from analysts pointed to encouraging signs for Apple. Rosenblatt Securities Inc. said it’s seeing "some new model production increases for September and October for the new iPhone models." Jun Zhang, an analyst at Rosenblatt, wrote that the firm now sees volume increasing by three million to five million units more than earlier expectations, to as many as 70 million units.
Apple set the base model price at $699 U.S. for the iPhone 11, down from the iPhone XR’s $749 price last year and below some analysts’ expectations. That might help attract some first-time buyers, said analysts. The iPhone 11’s debut comes as Apple also prepares to launch its new streaming service later this fall with a host of original programming.
