14 DAY TRIAL // There has been much speculation over the number of iPhones sold, both during the first weekend and so far and while predictions varied significantly, the actual numbers speak for themselves.
When AT&T announced that it had activated 146,000 iPhones in the last two days of the June quarter there was much doom and gloom. Everyone was expecting much higher numbers and inevitably Apple's stock took a nose dive. What many failed to realize is the fact that activations do not equal sales, especially considering the fact that there were reports of activation problems and delays.
As expected, when Apple posted their sales numbers for the 30 hours of iPhone availability, things started to look quite different. The Cupertino Company actually sold 270,000 iPhones during that day and a half before the quarter ended. That's nearly twice the number of phones that were activated, showing that there clearly was a problem with activations. However, the numbers are actually even better.
Many were disappointed that the company missed the half million estimate during the first weekend, but did it? If Apple says they sold 270,000 iPhones, that's fine, but that's only for Friday and Saturday and the weekend has one more day. While it is not reasonable to expect sales on Sunday to match those of the previous two days, they would definitely add quite a bit to the total. Even if the number of iPhones sold was less than 500,000 it is bound to be much higher than 270,000. Any way you look at the numbers, the iPhone is a great success and the number of sales dwarfs that of any other similar device.
The company's financial statements show that revenue from the iPhones--during the first two days of sales--was only $5 million based on its decision to amortize iPhone sales and revenue over a 24-month period.