Apple may have dethroned Samsung as the world's biggest smartphone manufacturer

Apple's stellar earnings report from Wednesday mostly revolved around one fascinating number: the 74.5 million iPhones sold in the December quarter.

It not only propelled Apple's profit to $18 billion — the biggest quarterly profit posted by any company, ever — but also may have dethroned Samsung as the biggest smartphone manufacturer in the world.

SEE ALSO: How big was Apple's first quarter? Pretty damn big






Samsung did not publicly disclose the number of smartphones sold in the quarter, so this statistic hasn't been confirmed. The South Korean company did say on Thursday, however, that it sold 95 million handsets in Q4, 70% of which of which were smartphones (that's 71 to 76 million).

An important distinction: When referring to unit sales, Samsung typically uses the term "shipped," which means the actual number of units sold might be lower. Samsung typically uses the term "shipped," which means the actual number of units sold might be lower. Apple used the term "sold" for its 74.5 million iPhones, but several analysts argued that the company is also referring to units shipped, not actually units sold to customers.

Regardless, the numbers cut it pretty close, and analysts mostly agree that Apple comes out ahead. According to a report from Strategy Analytics on Wednesday, the two companies sold exactly the same number of smartphones: 74.5 million.





Read more:
http://mashable.com/2015/01/29/apple-samsung-smartphone-sales/

Apple Smashes Forecasts, Selling 74.5 Million iPhones In Q1

- Apple sold 74.5 million iPhones in the last three months of 2015, beating even the most rosy forecasts by analysts
- Net profit grew 38% to $18 billion on sales of $74.6 billion; EPS of $3.06, all beat expectations
- The Apple Watch will ship in April






- Sales in the Greater China region rose 70% to $16.1 billion
- Currency headwinds (strong dollar, FX flux in Russia and Japan) cut revenues by 4%
- Dark spot continues to be iPad: sales fell 22% to $9 billion, mirroring a wider contraction in the tablet market
- Average selling price of the iPhone rose $50, to $687
- Shares of Apple jump 5.4% to $109.14 in after-hours trading.

Source:
http://www.forbes.com/sites/parmyolson/2015/01/27/apple-smashes-forecasts-selling-74-5-million-iphones-in-q1/

Apple, Samsung to remain bedfellows for next iPhone -- report

Samsung will produce 75 percent of the processors Apple needs for its next slate of iPhones, according to a report out of South Korea.

Though bitter rivals, Apple and Samsung are showing no signs of scrapping their relationship in the mobile chip business, according to a new report.

Samsung, which builds consumer electronics as well as processors, will provide 75 percent of the chips that Apple will need in its next iPhone, South Korea-based Maeil Business Newspaper reported Monday, citing people who claim to have knowledge of the companies' plans. Samsung will produce the chips, believed to be dubbed A9, at its factory in Austin, Texas, the report says.






Samsung has provided processors for Apple's smartphones for years. While Apple has said little publicly about this, a steady stream of reports and rumors over the last couple of years suggest that the company dislikes paying a rival for processors and has been looking elsewhere for chip production.

For Apple, the alternatives in chip production are numerous, though seemingly unappealing. Samsung has a wide range of competitors, including GlobalFoundries and Taiwan Semiconductor. So far, however, Apple has been incapable of moving all of its production to other providers. Exactly why the company has been loath to rely heavily on the other firms is unknown.


Source:
http://www.cnet.com/news/apple-samsung-still-bedfellows-as-they-eye-next-iphone-report-says/

Apple users spent $500 million on apps in the first week of 2015

San Francisco: Apple and thousands of mobile software developers are feasting on people's ravenous app-etite for apps.
Users of iPhones, iPads and iPod Touches spent nearly $500 million on applications and in-app services during the first week of the year, according to figures released Thursday. That's the highest weekly volume recorded by Apple since the Cupertino, California, company opened its App Store seven years ago and revolutionised the way people connect with online services and play games.
If sales continue at the same opening-week pace, Apple and the makers of the apps would split up about $25 billion in revenue. Apple's revenue-sharing formula calls for 70 per cent of app sales to be paid to the developers with the rest kept by the company.


Source:
http://ibnlive.in.com/news/apple-users-spent-500-million-on-apps-in-the-first-week-of-2015/522004-11.html