Apple posts record 31.2m iPhone sales; iPad and iPod figures down

Apple has released its sales and revenue figures for its fiscal third quarter, beating analysts expectations thanks to a record 31.2 million iPhone sales.

But while iPhone sales figures were the best of any Apple Q3 in history, iPad, iPod and Mac sales were all down in terms of units sold and revenue both year-on-year and compared to Q2 2013.

Regardless, Apple reported quarterly revenue of a cool $35.3 billion and a quarterly net profit of $6.9 billion (compared to $35 billion and $8.8bn respectively in Q3 2012), and now has $146.6 billion in cash in the bank.

Record iPhone sales

Apple iPhone sales were once again the success story, with the 31.2 million iPhones sold a record for Apple's Q3, up 20% y-o-y in terms of unit sales and 15% in terms of revenue.

This indicates a decrease in the average price of iPhone sold, reflecting a relatively strong quarter for previous iPhone models compared to the newest iPhone 5.

Apple sold 14.6 million iPads, compared to 17m over the same period in 2012, with unit sales down 14% and iPad revenue down 27%. However, there have been no new iPads this year, compared to three new models, including the iPad Mini, in 2012.

The good ol' iPod, relegated to a side note in the announcement, saw unit sales slump 32% y-o-y (31% by revenue) as phones and tablets continue to replace portable media players as the music machines of choice for more and more people.

New Apple products

Tim Cook, Apple CEO, said the company was "especially proud" of the iPhone sales figures and revealed Apple was "working hard on some amazing new products that we will introduce in the fall and across 2014".

Apple is predicting revenue between $34 and $37 billion for this next quarter, the latter figure looking likely to be closer to the mark if a new iPhone is launched, as widely expected.

by Joe Cox

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Joe Cox
Content Director

Joe is the Content Director for What Hi-Fi? and Future’s Product Testing, having previously been the Global Editor-in-Chief of What Hi-Fi?. He has worked on What Hi-Fi? across the print magazine and website for almost 20 years, writing news, reviews and features on everything from turntables to TVs, headphones to hi-fi separates. He has covered product launch events across the world, from Apple to Technics, Sony and Samsung; reported from CES, the Bristol Show, and Munich High End for many years; and written for sites such as the BBC, Stuff, and the Guardian. In his spare time, he enjoys expanding his vinyl collection and cycling (not at the same time).