Apple Said To Expect 20 Million iPhone Sales In Q1 2011

With sales of the fourth generation of its popular smartphone, the iPhone, still going strong, computer maker Apple is taking steps to ensure supply meets demand. The company raised its shipment goal for the first quarter of 2011 to around 20 million iPhones, the technology blog DigiTimes reported.

The blog quoted unnamed component suppliers based in Taiwan, saying the first-quarter shipment (probably January) goal for WCDMA (Wideband Code Division Multiple Access) iPhones has been adjusted from 13 million units to 14-15 million units and the soon-to-launch standard CDMA iPhones have been set at 5-6 million units. The CDMA protocol is primarily used on Verizon’s networks and will open the iPhone to over a billion subscribers worldwide.

Wider Market For iPhones

The article said, “Currently, Foxconn is the only maker of WCDMA iPhones, while Foxconn and Pegatron Technology have equally shared the production volume for the CDMA version, the sources noted.”

The statements on CDMA phones are sure to add to the speculation surrounding the rumoured arrival of the iPhone on Verizon’s mobile network, which currently supports the data-only iPod Touch and iPad. Currently, network operator AT&T is the exclusive iPhone carrier.

Sources also provided numbers on fourth quarter iPhone sales worldwide, claiming sales of 15.5 million units, which means around 47 million iPhones would have been sold in the whole of 2010.

The iPhone 4, with its new FaceTime video chat application, multi-tasking and other new capabilities, sold 1.7 million units in its first few days of launch in June. Largely on the strength of the iPhone 4 and iPad, Apple for its fourth quarter posted revenues of $20.34 billion (£13.22) and a net quarterly profit of $4.31 billion (£2.8 billion). Apple also sold 14.1 million iPhones for the quarter, buoyed by sales of the iPhone 4.

As 2010 winds down, the sales successes of the iPhone and Apple’s iPad tablet computer, which currently claims more than 90 percent of the tablet market, positions Apple for a strong kickoff in 2011. The iPad is expected to command a 53 percent market share through 2011, according to Gene Munster, a senior research analyst at Piper Jaffray, with Google Android-powered devices tallying 32.5 percent market share.