iPhone 5s Outsells iPhone 5c by ~3.5x in Launch Weekend According to Analytics Data

While Apple announced record-breaking iPhone launch weekend sales of nine million units earlier today, the company did not break down relative sales of the iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c. Analytics firm Localytics has, however, shared some data on usage, revealing that among U.S. users the iPhone 5s is being seen 3.4 times as often as the iPhone 5c.

In less than 3 days, the iPhone 5s and 5c combined now represent about 1.36% of the total numbers of all iPhones activated in the U.S. market across the top 4 carriers AT&T, Verizon Wireless, Sprint and T-Mobile. From the data we are seeing, 1.05% of all iPhones in the United States are now iPhone 5s and just 0.31% are iPhone 5c. That means that the iPhone 5s outshines the 5c by a factor of 3.4x, a clear indicator that the early adopters are favoring the high-end 5s compared to 5c.

iphone_5s_5c_share
International data shows a similar pattern according to Localytics, with iPhone 5s usage outpacing that of the iPhone 5c by 3.7x, with some countries such as Japan seeing ratios of as high as 5x.

While Apple made the iPhone 5c available for pre-order and has had fairly strong stocks of the device in its retail stores, the iPhone 5s has seen significant shortages, with online orders through Apple's U.S. store currently being quoted October shipping estimates. Gold and silver iPhone 5s models have been in particularly short supply, with even Apple's own retail stores having almost no supply of those devices on launch day.

The disparity in popularity between the iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c is unlikely to persist over the long-term, as the iPhone 5s is more likely to be the device of choice for early adopters who made the effort to purchase the device on the launch weekend, while the lower-cost iPhone 5c will likely improve its relative performance over time as the bulk of customers who are likely to be more budget conscious purchase new phones as they become upgrade eligible.

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Top Rated Comments

applesith Avatar
153 months ago
Higher priced phone is more popular? More evidence pointing to why Apple does not need to make a "cheap" phone.
Score: 55 Votes (Like | Disagree)
cube Avatar
153 months ago
Higher priced phone is more popular? More evidence pointing to why Apple does not need to make a "cheap" phone.

No, evidence that the 5C is not cheap enough.
Score: 48 Votes (Like | Disagree)
pancakedrawer Avatar
153 months ago
Hopefully Apple realises that they priced the iPhone 5C too high and we actually get the low-cost iPhone we all wanted.
Score: 41 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jrswizzle Avatar
153 months ago
If people think about this, it isn't all that surprising.

What type of person will be waiting in line for a new iPhone - the type who wants the latest and greatest, aka the iPhone 5S.

Down the line, however, the 5C will likely catch up in popularity as those looking for a "cheaper" upgrade could go for the colorful, durable 5C option.

Way to early to call the 5C a fail or flop as we have no yet reached the time period/consumer base for which the phone was intended.
Score: 27 Votes (Like | Disagree)
AppleWarMachine Avatar
153 months ago
Maybe because the 5c is an iPhone 5 wrapped in colored plastic :eek:
Score: 24 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Adelphos33 Avatar
153 months ago
First weekend sales will skew heavily towards the latest phone - that said, 2-3 mn 5C sold is a big win for Apple. At the end of the day, the margins are likely similar, so Apple is probably agnostic towards the split
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)