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iPhone 5s and 5c shipping to regional carriers on October 1st, but not to US Cellular
When your name is on a Major League Baseball stadium, and you're a mobile operator, you carry the iPhone. Unless you're US Cellular, that is. For reasons that cannot be comprehended by mere mortals, one of the United States' largest regional carriers still isn't offering the iPhone in any variant, despite promising back in May to carry Apple products before the year's end. In fact, things have gotten so bad over at USCC that its Facebook page has gone dead silent since September 13th, with customers far and wide ranting in the comments section about the carrier's inability to get the one phone they all want. Making matters worse for USCC is the fact that Appalachian Wireless, C Spire, Bluegrass Cellular, Cellcom, GCI, MTA, Nex-Tech Wireless, Ntelos and Strata are all lined up to start selling both the iPhone 5c and iPhone 5s on October 1st. We suppose even more could be added as time rolls on and the supply / demand balance rights itself, but it's probably high time for US Cellular holdouts to head on over to a rival. Patience only gets you so far, you know?
78% of new iPhones sold globally are iPhone 5s models
For all of the publicity that swirled around the less expensive and more colorful iPhone 5c, the reality is that the new iPhone 5s is the top dog in worldwide sales. That's the report from Localytics, a firm that analyzes mobile stats. In the data analysis that started Friday and ended yesterday, Localytics saw that despite some expectation that the iPhone 5c would fit perfectly with Chinese consumers, the fact is that 91 percent of iPhone sales there were for the more expensive iPhone 5s. Numbers were pretty similar around the world, with the UK having the lowest ratio of iPhone 5s to iPhone 5c sales, with "only" 69 percent of new iPhone sales being for the 5s. Here in the US, 76 percent of new iPhone sales were for the 5s. One possible explanation is the sale of the gold-colored iPhone 5s. The gold color has been a terrific seller in China and the rest of Asia, while black or white phones are less popular. Globally, the iPhone 5s accounted for 78 percent of new iPhones purchased. The US has the highest concentration of new iPhone sales, with 68 percent of iPhone 5s and 5c devices. Japan is next with 13 percent. Sales of both new iPhones were robust, to say the least, with Apple selling 9 million over the weekend.
Daily Update for September 24, 2013
It's the TUAW Daily Update, your source for Apple news in a convenient audio format. You'll get all the top Apple stories of the day in three to five minutes for a quick review of what's happening in the Apple world. You can listen to today's Apple stories by clicking the inline player (requires Flash) or the non-Flash link below. To subscribe to the podcast for daily listening through iTunes, click here. No Flash? Click here to listen. Subscribe via RSS
Gazelle saw 210% more Samsung trade-ins during iPhone 5s launch weekend
Apple experienced a record sales weekend for the launch of the iPhone 5s and 5c, so this news probably isn't surprising. Consumer electronics recycler Gazelle saw a lot of action during the same time, with almost four times as many trade-ins on launch day compared to that same time frame during the iPhone 5 launch last year. It might be a number of Samsung smartphone owners jumping ship to the new iPhones, as Gazelle reported a 210 percent jump in trade-ins of Samsung phones during the launch weekend. During launch day on September 20, Gazelle made five offers per second between 10 and 11 AM ET. That's a whopping 18,000 people in that hour who decided to trade in their existing phone for cash to use on a new iPhone. The company also reported that the average value per trade-in is US$50 higher this year than last year. Gazelle also surveyed more than 3,000 consumers about the new iPhones, asking questions to determine why people considered an upgrade to the new Apple smartphones. It found that 36 percent of those who said they were upgrading to the iPhone 5s said they were getting it because they were due for an upgrade, and only 16 percent said they were upgrading for the Touch ID fingerprint scanner. Among iPhone 5c upgraders, 29 percent said they were going to the colorful phone for the better camera, with an equal number upgrading because of a better price.
IHS: iPhone 5s component tally reaches $199, iPhone 5c costs $173
Though it has a new camera module, faster processor and fingerprint sensor, the components in the new iPhone 5s are only slightly less expensive than those in the iPhone 5, says IHS. Not surprisingly, the iPhone 5c is cheaper than either the iPhone 5 or the iPhone 5s. According to AllThingsD, which got an advanced look at the IHS report, the iPhone 5s costs US$199 to build, as compared to $205 for last year's iPhone 5. Components for the 16 GB iPhone 5s cost Apple $191, with another $8 tacked on for assembly. The jump to 64 GB of storage in the 5s bumps up the price by $11, bringing the final cost to $218 for the model. By using a colorful polycarbonate shell instead of aluminum, Apple is able to trim the cost of the iPhone 5c to $173 for the 16 GB model and $183 for the 64 GB model. These prices include $7 for assembly. Echoing what was said by iFixit, IHS says the new iPhone models are very similar. "I would say that they're almost the same phone, except that the 5s has the fingerprint sensor, the A7 processor and some newer memory chips that consume less power. Beyond that, they're basically the same," said IHS analyst Andrew Rassweiler.
Daily Update for September 23, 2013
It's the TUAW Daily Update, your source for Apple news in a convenient audio format. You'll get all the top Apple stories of the day in three to five minutes for a quick review of what's happening in the Apple world. You can listen to today's Apple stories by clicking the inline player (requires Flash) or the non-Flash link below. To subscribe to the podcast for daily listening through iTunes, click here. No Flash? Click here to listen. Subscribe via RSS
The iPhone 5s is greatly outselling the iPhone 5c
OK, so we know that Apple sold a record 9 million iPhones over the weekend, but what you might find surprising is that data provided by analytics firm Localytics shows that in the US, the more expensive iPhone 5s is appearing a whopping 3.4 times more often than the iPhone 5c. The chart at the top of this post shows that in the US, the iPhone 5s makes up about 1.36 percent of all iPhones activated in the US market across all carriers. For the iPhone 5c, the number is only about 0.31 percent. To quote Localytics, "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." It's not just Americans who are picking up the iPhone 5s in record numbers. Localytics also provided numbers for international carriers and iPhone 5s usage is outperforming the iPhone 5c by a factor of 3.7x. In Japan, the numbers are even more skewed, with a ratio of about 5x. Eric Slivka at MacRumors points out that this disparity in sales probably won't last in the long run, saying "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.
Apple adjusts its quarterly earnings outlook on strength of tremendous iPhone sales
In the face of pundits who thought Apple's iPhone success had plateaued, Apple sold a record number of iPhones this past weekend -- 9 million units to be exact. In fact, Apple's iPhone sales this past weekend were so great that Apple this morning filed a regulatory filing with the SEC slightly tweaking its initial financial forecasts for the quarter. Apple expects total company revenue for the fourth fiscal quarter to be near the high end of the previously provided range of $34 billion to $37 billion, and expects gross margin to be near the high end of the previously provided range of 36 percent to 37 percent. Apple's fiscal quarter ends on September 28.
Apple sells nine million new iPhones in three days
Apple just set a new all-time record for iPhone launch sales: it reports selling nine million total iPhone 5s and 5c units this weekend, well over the 5 million of the iPhone 5 launch last year. While the company isn't breaking down sales by individual models, it notes that the initial iPhone 5s supply has already sold out. The company also mentioned that more than 200 million devices are already running iOS 7. That's the fastest software upgrade in history, according to Apple. While it's difficult to put the sales and download figures into context without directly comparable numbers from rivals, it's clear that the new devices are off to a strong start. Check out Apple's self-congratulatory release after the break.
Apple airs new 'Greetings Too' iPhone 5c ad
During the Emmys last night, Apple aired a new cut of it's "Greetings" iPhone 5c ad. "Greetings Too" features many of the same scenes -- with some new ones added -- of "colorful" people saying hello on their iPhone 5c's. In addition to the new cut on television, Apple has posted Greetings Too and an extended cut of the first Greetings ad on YouTube.
Refresh Roundup: week of September 16th, 2013
Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging for an update. From time to time, these mobile devices are blessed with maintenance refreshes, bug fixes, custom ROMs and anything in between, and so many of them are floating around that it's easy for a sizable chunk to get lost in the mix. To make sure they don't escape without notice, we've gathered every possible update, hack, and other miscellaneous tomfoolery we could find during the last week and crammed them into one convenient roundup. If you find something available for your device, please give us a shout at tips at engadget dawt com and let us know. Enjoy!
Weekly Roundup: iPhone 5s and 5c reviews, Droid Maxx review, iOS 7 available to download, and more!
You might say the week is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workweek, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Weekly Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past seven days -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
A series of unfortunate events at the Pasadena Apple Store today
Today was an exciting day at the Apple Store in Pasadena, Calif., as the launch of the new iPhone 5s and 5c turned ugly. The LA Times is reporting that at least 200 people were waiting in front of the store this morning for a chance to buy one of the new phones when several fights broke out. Two people, ages 23 and 43, were arrested for fighting in line outside of the store before it even opened. Then around 9 AM, another fight started, this time involving a contender for worst person in the world. A man hired several van loads of homeless people from a downtown Los Angeles homeless mission with the promise of paying them $40 if they'd wait overnight in line. When the man left the store with several iPhones this morning, the people he hired began fighting with him, saying they weren't being paid enough. To defuse the situation the police removed the man from the premises, leaving the homeless people he'd hired stranded at the Apple Store without being paid. Dominoe Moody, one of the people hired by the unnamed man, said between 70 and 80 homeless people were recruited and brought to the store. A lieutenant with the Pasadena Police, Jason Clawson, told the LA Times the department isn't investigating the incident saying "It's not a police issue. It's a business issue."
Editor's Letter: Slow and steady wins the race
In each issue of Distro, Executive Editor Marc Perton publishes a wrap-up of the week in news. In this week's Distro, we take a closer look at Apple's two new iPhones, the 5c and 5s. The 5c, despite being less impressive when it comes to features and specs, may actually be the more popular of the two models. As Myriam Joire says in her review, the pastel-hued phone is "a gorgeous handset that brings a breath of fresh air to the iPhone lineup. For many people, it might even be a better choice than the iPhone 5s." That, of course, doesn't mean the 5s isn't worth considering. In her review of Apple's new flagship model, Myriam declares it the best iPhone ever made and says that Apple "took a good product and made it better through hardware upgrades, new features and completely revamped software." If you have an iPhone 5, should you upgrade? You'll have to read the full review to find out. Also in this week's Distro, we check in with audiophile and Head-fi.org founder Jude Mansilla. His favorite classic gadget? It's a tie between the Newton MessagePad and a portable CD player paired with a good set of headphones, which he says "started me on the journey that turned into Head-Fi.org."
iFixit tears down the iPhone 5c
Last night, iFixit started to take apart the iPhone 5s, and now the repair shop has fixed its sights on the iPhone 5c. This latest guide by iFixit delves into the differences between the iPhone 5c and both the 5s and 5. It kicks off with some commentary on the meaning of the "c" in the phone's name -- does it stand for "color," "cheaper," "childish" or something else? The teardown points out in several places that the iPhone 5c is very similar to the iPhone 5. It shares many of the same hardware specs and is basically an iPhone 5 with a plastic casing. It's not an iPhone 5 clone, though, and actually shares some features of the iPhone 5s, like a snug-fitting display assembly, a bigger battery and a very similar internal case design. Just like the iPhone 5s, the 5c is given a repairability score of 6 out of 10. According to iFixit, removing the screen and accessing the battery are moderately easy. Replacing these components, though, is no cakewalk with extra-strength adhesive getting in the way of the battery and antenna.
Apple: Demand for iPhone 5s and 5c has been 'incredible'
Everyone on Wall Street pretty much freaked last Monday when Apple didn't announce any pre-order numbers for the total units of iPhone 5c's sold. That's nothing new -- analysts on The Street are a jittery, throw-you-under-a-bus crowd. But the fact that Apple has remained silent is neither good nor bad. However, today that silence has been broken a little bit with the company telling AllThingsD: "Demand for the new iPhones has been incredible and we are currently sold out or have limited supply of certain iPhone 5s models in some stores." Will that assuage Wall Streets worries? Probably not. But I sense a well-deserved "I told you so" from Apple coming on when they do announce the new iPhone's sales launch numbers.
iPhone 5s and 5c sorta, kinda pass chest-level drop tests
Android Authority is in Hong Kong with both the iPhone 5s and 5c. Like it has done in the past, the blog put the two phones through their paces in a classic comparison drop test. Joshua Vergara dropped the phones from a chest-level height and sent them to the pavement in the front-first, back-first and side-first positions. In the end, the iPhone 5s fared well in the tests with only minimal scratches and dings. The iPhone 5c passed with flying colors until a front-first drop shattered the screen. Bummer. You can check out the torture test in the video below.
Distro Issue 108: With the arrival of two new Apple handsets, do the i's have it?
Just over a week ago, Apple pulled the wraps off of not one but two new smartphone options for the iOS faithful. In this week's edition of our slate magazine, the iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c head through the Engadget review gauntlet to test Cupertino's latest against the competition. Eyes-On peeks at Chrome bags, Hands-On visits IDF 2013 and Rec Reading investigates Nintendo's secret weapon. A rather colorful issue is ready for your e-reading device of choice via the repositories down below. Distro Issue 108 PDF Distro in the iTunes App Store Distro in the Google Play Store Distro in the Windows Store Distro APK (for sideloading) Like Distro on Facebook Follow Distro on Twitter
iPhone 5s and 5c sales kickoff worldwide with long lines, October ship dates
The iPhone 5s and 5c went on sale today with people lining up at Apple stores around the world. Lines reportedly were long in Japan, Australia and across Europe. As of the writing of this post, the lines are still forming in the US. Online orders also commenced with ship dates quickly extending out to seven to 10 days as soon as the stores went live. Though some lampooned the color, one of the more difficult iPhone models to purchase apparently is the gold iPhone 5s. Shortly after it went on sale, ship dates for that color choice slipped to October in the UK, France, Germany, Australia and the US. It is no longer available to order in Hong Kong or Singapore. The chatter from Twitter suggests many stores in Europe do not have the gold model in stock either or have limited supplies. Inventory of the iPhone 5c appears to be holding up well with the handset still showing a ship date of one to three days worldwide. Pre-orders, which kicked off last week, should land on customers doorsteps today.
UK's Three to sell iPhone 5c and 5s this Friday with unlimited 4G data
The UK's low cost mobile carrier Three has just announced that it will begin selling the iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c with unlimited 4G data on Friday, September 20. The iPhone 5s will be available starting at £99 and the iPhone 5c will be available starting at £49 on a 24-month contract from Three stores. As all of Three's mobile plans come with unlimited data, that means owners who buy the latest iPhones through Three can enjoy surfing the web to their heart's content when they're out and about. Do keep in mind though that Three has not rolled out its 4G plan yet, so iPhone 5s and 5c owners will be browsing on 3G until the 4G rollout begins in London and a few other cities in the UK in December. You can check out the full PR release below. Show full PR text Three today announced it will offer iPhone 5s, the most forward-thinking smartphone in the world, and iPhone 5c, the most colourful iPhone yet, beginning Friday, September 20. iPhone 5s will be available starting at £99 and iPhone 5c will be available starting at £49 on a 24-month contract from Three stores, online at three.co.uk or by calling 0800 358 1799. "We are very excited to announce that the much anticipated iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c are now available on our network," said Thomas Malleschitz, marketing director at Three. "iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c, along with our commitment to provide 4G at no extra cost, means that our customers can look forward to an even better network experience. We will also continue to offer all-you-can-eat data, so customers can truly enjoy the full capabilities of iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c without having to worry about exceeding their data allowance." Plan Ultimate 500 Ultimate 1000 The One Plan Voice (minutes) 500 1,000 2,000 SMS 5,000 5,000 5,000 Data (MB) Unlimited Unlimited Unlimited iPhone 5s 16GB £99 upfront + £37/mo for 24 months £99 upfront + £39/mo for 24 months £99 upfront + £41/mo for 24 months iPhone 5s 32GB £99 upfront + £42/mo for 24 months £99 upfront + £44/mo for 24 months £99 upfront + £46/mo for 24 months iPhone 5s 64GB £99 upfront + £47/mo for 24 months £99 upfront + £49/mo for 24 months £99 upfront + £51/mo for 24 months iPhone 4s 8GB £0 upfront + £27/mo for 24 months £99 upfront + £30/mo for 24 months £0 upfront + £33/mo for 24 months
