Apple sold more iOS devices in 2011 than total Macs in 28 years

[TykeClone]

Apple sold more iOS devices in 2011 than total Macs in 28 years

A new breakdown of Apple's blockbuster 2011 notes that the company sold more iPhones, iPads and iPod touches in the 12-month span than it has sold Mac computers in the company's history.

The revelation was made this week by Horace Dediu at Asymco, who noted that Apple sold a total of 156 million iOS devices in 2011. That was enough to top the total number of Macs ever sold, which sits at 122 million.

As a whole, there have been 316 million cumulative iOS units sold to date. That means 2011 accounted for nearly half of all iOS devices sold by Apple since the platform launched in 2007.

Of course, the lead iOS device is the iPhone, which is likely to cross the milestone of 200 million units sold during the current quarter. Boosted by the launch of the iPhone 4S, Apple set a new record in the 2011 holiday season, with 37 million iPhones sold in that three-month span alone.

But Apple has also been surprised by the explosive success of the iPad. To date, 55 million iPads have been sold, a number that Cook admitted in a speech at this week's Goldman Sachs Conference exceeded even his most optimistic of expectations.

"To put it in context, it took us 22 years to sell 55 million Macs," Cook said. "It took us about 5 years to sell 22 million iPods, and it took us about 3 years to sell that many iPhones. And so, this thing is... on a trajectory that's off the charts."

[HFCS]

Apple sold more iOS devices in 2011 than total Macs in 28 years

Price point and the deep passionate love most people have for gossip.

I'm a lifelong MacOS user. When Jobs came back from his forced exile, OSX was a quantum star trek style leap forward in stability and user interface. From 99-02 a nice new Mac was pretty much some high tech machine sent from the future compared to crappy OS9 Macs or any Windows machine for several years. This didn't matter in terms of sales, because even the cheapest models were priced outside of the non-professional's price point.

The "i" products can be expensive compared to other consumer electronics entertainment devices, but in the end people can all scrounge up $100 to $600 somehow if they want it bad enough. Not the case for slick, stable Mac OSX back in the early '00s with a $1800-$4000 entry point.

Pair the decade old OSX usability and design with the electronic revolution of gossip and you've got gold.

[Entropy]

Proof point that it's not just the hardware but the user interface and the whole package that matters.

[rebecacy]

It's all about price

[CloneFan03]

if it is shiny and has an apple on it, I'll buy it.

[RyCy04]

I think this means that America is now in the same league as New Zealand. Sheep now outnumber people.

[MaccloNe]

It's all about price

Then you must own a Yugo, live in a trailer, and use a Windows ME eMachine? After all, it is all about price.

I drive a nice truck, live in a custom built house and own Apple products because it is all about quality.

[MaccloNe]

I think this means that America is now in the same league as New Zealand. Sheep now outnumber people.

Really? Those that buy Windows crap are the real sheep. .

[gharris]

Then you must own a Yugo, live in a trailer, and use a Windows ME eMachine? After all, it is all about price.

I drive a nice truck, live in a custom built house and own Apple products because it is all about quality.

[Bobber]

Have not jumped on the Apple bandwagon mostly because they are pricey(however do have an Ipod I found).

I'm sure they're as great of products as everybody says, but ultimately I'm a value guy(shop mostly at Aldi's, Fareway,Target, Wal Mart, and Amazon) Don't own a smart phone yet and am perfectly happy calling and texting on my old Motorola Razor.

The Apple Phenomonen is interesting to watch. Saw a documentry on Steve Jobs after he died and one of the former company guys was talking about the Iphone and how surprised he was it sold so well intially when it couldn't even hold a charge much longer then a day. No wonder they are doing so well when they have the market growth they've had with products that are priced a premium. It's like Mercerdes taking over the world auto market.

Amazing stats.

[Wesley]

You cannot argue with this success. That said, most of us have the complete array of Apple products already.

Moving on to next XBox360 and Playstation....

ipads are replacing a lot of laptops around town. The laptop people cannot be totally happy.

[longtimeclone]

I am curious how long this success can last for apple now that Jobs is gone. Apple has done a great job of taking a product and making it their own.

[alarson]

I am curious how long this success can last for apple now that Jobs is gone. Apple has done a great job of taking a product and making it their own.

The writing is on the wall with all the frivolous lawsuits theyve been making lately.

[longtimeclone]

The writing is on the wall with all the frivolous lawsuits theyve been making lately.

I guess I didn't see their one about the iPad trademark in China, but I don't think that these are necessarily writing on the wall yet.

I think with little overhaul to their current products Apple should be very set for at least 2-3 years.

[wxman1]

I used to hate apple products and I still do to a degree. However my fiance's macbook is growing on me (I will buy a new laptop after I graduate in May) but I am torn with getting one or waiting to see what Windows 8 is like. I grew up on windows and love it but os x is getting more and more enticing. Price point is huge for me too, I would much rather spend the extra $500-$600 on other things than a better looking computer.