Sales of older generation Apple products are outpacing more current Android-based devices, new research reveals.
A survey from Canaccord Genuity originally reported by AppleInsider shows that while the iPhone 4 is "by far" the best-selling device at both AT&T and Verizon stores, products like the first-generation iPad and the iPhone 3GS are still selling quite well.
"Interestingly, our April checks indicated continued strong demand for the iPhone 3GS at AT&T and iPad 1 at Verizon, as these older generation products with reduced prices often outsold new Android products," Canaccord analyst Michael Walkley said in a note to investors. "We believe this highlights Apple's significant competitive advantage, and these older products help Apple offer a tiered pricing strategy at key channels."
Canaccord found that the iPhone 3GS, which is competitively priced at $49, outsells Android-based smartphones like the HTC Inspire or the Motorola Atrix. Unsurprisingly, Walkley also said the iPad is the best-selling tablet on the market. By contrast, other tablets have had "modest sales," such as RIM's BlackBerry PlayBook, the Motorola Xoom, or the Samsung Galaxy Tab.
It seems other tablet makers are faced with an uphill battle when it comes to competing with Apple. In fact, a recent DigiTimes report said that in light of lackluster sales of non-Apple tablets, many companies have to deal with the issue of excess inventory of their devices. Apparently, the market has a limited demand of just 20 million units, while there is only demand for 20 million tablets this year.
In spite of a decline in Apple sales in the first quarter down to 4.69 million units from the previous number of 7.33 units, Walkley also noted that both the 16GB and 32GB first-gen iPads sold out within two weeks after the launch of the iPad 2.
However, Android still has a strong foothold on the smartphone market. The most recent numbers from comScore showed Google's mobile platform to be the most popular OS in the country, with 31.2 percent of the market. RIM sits in the second spot with 30.4 percent of the space, and Apple holds steady with about a quarter (24.7 percent) of the mobile market.
For now, it appears Apple has benefited from discounting older-generation models of its popular products.
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