Last month, revenue from U.S. sales of wireless headphones surpassed that of wired ones

By Christian Zibreg on Jul 28, 2016

If you need the definite proof that Apple’s rumored decision to remove the 3.5mm headphone jack from the next iPhone is based on some actual real-world numbers, here’s one. According to the latest stats for the month of June, published Thursday by research firm NPD, revenue from sales of wireless headphones in the United States during the month of June beat that of their wired counterparts. Revenue from wireless headphones accounted for 54 percent of U.S. dollar sales and 17 percent of unit sales in the headphone category. Read More

 

Survey highlights the top 3 quibbles developers are having with Mac App Store

By Christian Zibreg on Jun 10, 2016

Apple is shaking up the App Store, but what about its OS X counterpart? Sure, the new subscription terms extend to iOS, tvOS and OS X apps, but what’s Apple going to do, if anything, in order to make the Mac App Store a more attractive venue for Mac software distribution?

We should find out what’s next for the Mac App Store next week at WWDC. In the meantime, here’s what developers are disliking about it, based on a DevMate survey which polled about 700 Mac developers. Read More

 

iOS continues bleeding share to Android as smartphone market slows considerably

By Christian Zibreg on Jun 2, 2016

Mary Meeker’s 2016 Internet Trends Report is a treasure trove of surveys and predictions on the global trends concerning our industry. I found out this morning that half of the searches will be either through images or speech by 2020 and that Siri was handling more than one billion requests per week through speech as of June 2015.

I’ve now compiled the report’s most interesting tidbits regarding Internet usage around the world, the iOS vs. Android battle and more. Read More

 

Thank you, Siri: mobile voice assistant usage is rising at a rapid clip

By Christian Zibreg on Jun 2, 2016

After perusing a massive 238-slide deck that is Mary Meeker’s new 2016 Internet Trends Report this morning, a slide has captured my attention that summarizes the trend toward voice searches and digital assistants. It says that in five years time at least half of all searches will be either through images or speech, which is fascinating.

What I find even more remarkable is the fact that Siri alone handled more than one billion requests per week through speech as of June 2015. Read More

 

Apple edges out Samsung in American Customer Satisfaction Index

By Christian Zibreg on Jun 1, 2016

Apple has managed to edge out Samsung in this year’s American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI), the nation’s cross-industry measure of customer satisfaction. The Cupertino firm has beaten the Galaxy maker by just one percentage point when it comes to smartphone customer satisfaction.

The report, which released Wednesday, reveals that in 2016 Apple scored 81 out of 100 while Samsung stayed where it was the year before at 80.

A year before, both firms scored 80 out of 100 for customer satisfaction. Read More

 

Study suggests that one in ten iOS users listens to Apple Music

By Cody Lee on Aug 18, 2015

Roughly one in ten iOS users is listening to Apple Music, according to a new research study conducted by MusicWatch. The company, which provides consumer research for the music industry, collected data from the surveys of 5,000 U.S. consumers, aged 13 and older.

According to the research, a little over three quarters (77%) of iOS users in the United States are aware of Apple Music. Only 11%, however, of the group surveyed said they are actually using the service, and 48% of those who have tried it out said they are no longer using it. Read More

 

Apple Watch bands are insanely profitable: $49 Sport band costs Apple just $2.05 to make

By Christian Zibreg on Jun 18, 2015

IHS, a technology research firm, has found that Apple is making huge markups on the bands, with an entry-level 38mm fluroelastomer Sport band which retails for $49 costing an estimated $2.05 to make.

It should be noted the figure excludes other related costs such as packaging, shipping, marketing, cost of sale and so forth and “may not capture the full cost of the material Apple uses to make the band,” IHS analyst Kevin Keller told Reuters. Read More

 

Apple ranks highest in annual Consumer Reports satisfaction survey for computer support services

By Christian Zibreg on May 29, 2015

Once again, Apple has managed to maintain the highest score for overall satisfaction when it comes to computer technical support, Consumer Reports, the influential U.S. magazine published monthly by Consumers Union since 1936, has found in its July 2015 issue.

The non-profit organization first began polling customers about the topic back in 2007. Apple’s tech support is “by far the most effective of any computer brand’s,” the magazine revealed. If you own a Windows PC, there’s only a 50-50 chance that a manufacturer’s tech support will solve your problem, the survey found. Read More

 

Slice Intelligence: Apple Watch sales taper off to 30,000 units per day

By Christian Zibreg on May 22, 2015

Slice Intelligence, an opt-in service that scans receipts of two million online shoppers’ inboxes, estimated Friday that Apple Watch sales have cooled off and currently stand at or below 30,000 daily units in the United States, following the launch day spike that saw an estimated 1.5 million U.S. pre-orders of the wrist-worn device.

As noted by Quartz tech editor Dan Former, that suggests that Apple Watch orders fell sharply after the first day and haven’t grown since. Read More

 

Survey: Apple Pay surpasses PayPal in mobile payments

By Christian Zibreg on Apr 21, 2015

Apple Pay is picking up steam and has hit an important milestone: the service is outperforming PayPal in mobile payments, according to a new 451 Research survey shared with iDownloadBlog on Tuesday. It’s been gaining momentum in the mobile payments space since becoming available six months ago, primarily at the expense of PayPal.

The March study, conducted by 451 Research’s ChangeWave service, consisted of 4,168 respondents primarily based in North America, and looked at planned use of mobile payment applications and the issue of security.

Respondents interested in buying an Apple Watch are twice as likely (54 percent) as all other smartphone owners to say they’ll use mobile payment apps (29 percent said ‘Very Likely’ and 25 percent said ‘Somewhat Likely’).

And overall consumer interest in Samsung’s mobile payments service (which is launching this summer) sits at a meager eight percent of respondents who are ‘Very Likely’ or ‘Somewhat Likely’ to use Samsung Pay in the future. Read More

 

Switzerland is indeed in trouble…

By Christian Zibreg on Apr 13, 2015

When Apple’s design chief Jonathan Ive opined ahead of the Apple Watch unveiling last year that Switzerland was in trouble, many commentators waved off the comment as pure marketing talk.

But surveys cited in today’s note by Key Banc researches clearly show that a much stronger-than-anticipated reception to the device may indeed give fashionable watch brands a pause.

The truth is, sales of traditional watches have already slowed as would-be buyers were holding off purchases in the wake of the Apple Watch’s arrival. Read More

 

Survey: 1M Watches sold on Friday in US, Sport models most popular

By Christian Zibreg on Apr 13, 2015

The “disappointing” Apple Watch has seen an estimated 957,000 sales on its first day of pre-orders in the United States alone, filing as better-than-expected initial success than its first iPhone or the iPod. By comparison, Apple sold a millionth iPhone after 74 days. It took 28 days to get to that milestone with the iPad and two years with the iPod.

According to a poll of 9,080 online shoppers by Slice Intelligence, which measures digital commerce by tracking consumer e-receipts, an average of 1.3 Watches were purchased per customer, with $503.83 spent per item, indicating some fans bought more than one device. Read More

 

New iPhones help Apple capture record smartphone share in China

By Christian Zibreg on Apr 2, 2015

Apple’s been making some impressive strides in China, its second-biggest market by revenue and home to a population of 1.33 billion people.

On the weight of strong sales of the 4.7-inch iPhone 6 and 5.5-inch iPhone 6 Plus, the Cupertino firm has now hit an all-time high share, with iOS accounting for a record 27.6 percent volume share of the Chinese smartphone market versus 17.9 percent a year ago.

Kantar data for the three months ending in February proves the iPhone 6 has remained the country’s top-selling smartphone in the period. It’s grown from 9.5 percent of sales recorded in the previous period ending in January to 10.2 percent ending in February. Xiaomi’s iPhone 6 Plus lookalike, the RedMI Note, took the second spot, followed by Apple’s 5.5-inch phablet-class iPhone 6 Plus, which grabbed the third place. Read More

 

Apple grabs 89 percent of smartphone profits while Android captures record-low 11 percent

By Christian Zibreg on Feb 26, 2015

The latest indication that even with its minuscule share of smartphone units sold Apple is clobbering everyone when it comes to profits came Thursday via research firm Strategy Analytics. The research company reported that the Cupertino firm took home an astounding 88.7 percent of operating profit share in smartphones during the fourth quarter of last year.

This is no doubt the effect of strong sales of Apple’s well-received iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus handsets. Android, meanwhile, has fallen to a record-low eleven (11.3) percent. Read More

 

iOS activation in enterprise jumps to 73 percent, increasing Apple’s lead over Android

By Christian Zibreg on Feb 26, 2015

Thanks in no small part to strong sales of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus smartphones, Apple has been able to extend its enterprise lead over Android during the fourth quarter of last year.

According to the new Mobility Index Report data (PDF download) by research firm Good Technology, iOS activations in the enterprise market jumped from 69 percent in the third quarter of last year to 73 percent during the last three months of 2014, while Android activations fell from 29 percent to 25 percent. Read More

 

JP Morgan determines that 5 percent of iPhone owners will buy Apple Watch

By Christian Zibreg on Feb 11, 2015

A study released Wednesday by investment firm J.P. Morgan bodes well for Apple’s inaugural wrist-worn gadget. Although the Apple Watch requires an iPhone and is limited to owners of the iPhone 5 and newer, JP Morgan thinks there will be 400 million potential Apple Watch customers by the end of the March quarter, with five percent of compatible iPhone owners potentially buying it before the end of 2015. Read More

 

For the first time since 2012, Apple sells more phones in US than Android

By Christian Zibreg on Feb 4, 2015

Wednesday, TechCrunch relayed a new survey by market research firm Kantar Worldpanel which underscores a small victory in Apple’s global rivalry with Android as the company overtook Android vendors in terms of units shipped in the United States during the last three months of 2014.

Driven by the introduction of its larger-screened iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, Apple took a 47.7 percent share of the U.S. smartphone market. Android grabbed a 47.6 percent share and Windows Phone accounted for just 3.8 percent of smartphone sales.
Read More

 

Apple ties Samsung for the world’s top smartphone maker crown

By Christian Zibreg on Jan 29, 2015

Driven by phenomenal iPhone sales during the holiday quarter, Apple has now tied Samsung for the title of the world’s top smartphone maker. According to latest numbers from research firm Strategy Analytics relayed by Bloomberg, both companies sold about 74.5 million smartphones during the fourth quarter of last year.

Both companies took an equal 19.6 percent market share in the global market for smartphones. Motorola owner Lenovo was a distant third with a 6.5 percent share, followed by Chinese vendor Huawei, which took a 5.7 percent share. Lenovo and Huawei shipper about 24 million smartphones each. Read More

 

Nearly 1-in-5 iPhone 6 owners plans to buy Apple Watch, survey finds

By Cody Lee on Jan 14, 2015

A new survey finds that nearly 1-in-5 iPhone 6 owners are planning to buy the Apple Watch when it launches later this year. ZDNet points to the data, published by marketing research firm Credit Suisse, which shows 18% of iPhone 6 or 6 Plus owners polled said they would “definitely” be buying Apple’s new wearable.

Additionally, 11% of those queried said that they would “probably” be purchasing the Apple Watch when it’s released, and another 27% described the likelihood that they would be getting one as “maybe.” Out of those in the “no” category, 27% said they would “probably not” be getting it, and 18% answered “definitely not.” Read More

 

iOS again beats out Android in Christmas Day mobile shopping

By Christian Zibreg on Dec 29, 2014

Just like last year, Apple’s iPhone and iPad again dominated online shopping traffic and online mobile sales during Christmas Day, according to an IBM survey first shared by VentureBeat.

Based on data from IBM’s real-time Digital Analytics Benchmark, which tracked approximately 800 retail websites in the United States, iOS devices were responsible for an average of $97.28 per order spent online versus $67.40 for Android users, a difference of 44.3 percent.

In other words, a commanding 57.1 percent of online shopping via mobile during Christmas Day was carried out using an iPhone or iPad, an increase of 8.3 percent versus the previous year. Read More

 
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