July 9-10, 2013
San Francisco, CA

Early Bird Tickets on Sale

Apple might have some problems keeping investors interested, but consumers are clearly still Apple-hungry. The iPhone 5 and iPhone 4S were the two best-selling smartphones in the fourth quarter of 2012, according to a new Strategy Analytics report.

Strategy Analytics’ data showed the iPhone 5 was the overall champ, with 27.4 million iPhone 5 units sold in the fourth quarter, while 17.4 million 4S units were sold, and 15.4 million Galaxy S III units were sold. The iPhone 5 and 4S combined accounted for 1 in 5 of smartphones shipped in the world in Q4 2012.

“The iPhone 5 captured an impressive 13 percent share of all smartphones shipped globally, and it has become the world’s bestselling smartphone model for the first time ever,” Strategy Analytics wrote in its report. “A rich touchscreen design, extensive distribution across dozens of countries, and generous operator subsidies have been among the main causes of the iPhone 5’s success.”

In the third quarter of 2012, by comparison, the Galaxy S III was on top with 18 million units sold, the iPhone 5 (which was barely available in Q3) sold 6 million units, and the iPhone 4S had 16.2 million units sold.

While this news is good for Apple, Samsung can’t be counted out looking forward. Samsung is rumored to be releasing its Galaxy S IV — the successor to the Galaxy S III — some time in March. If that timing holds true and the phone is more powerful and flashy than the S III, the S IV could easily overtake the iPhone 5′s sales in the second quarter of 2013.

Take a look at Strategy Analytics’ numbers below:

While the smartphone sales battle between Samsung and Apple has been a close one, Samsung may finally have gotten the upper hand.

That’s the story according to a recent Reuters poll, which asked over three dozen analysts which company they thought came out on top during the second quarter.

For most of them, the answer was Samsung, which is estimated to have moved 50 million phones in the past three months. Apple, in comparison, is projected to have moved just 30.2 million.

Much of Samsung’s success has been fueled by sales of its latest and greatest smartphone, the Galaxy S III, which it expected to sell 10 million of in July alone.

But what’s most surprising about Samsung’s 50 million number is that, only last month, the company announced an identical total for worldwide sales for its entire Galaxy S line. So either analysts are far too bullish, or Samsung has sold as many phones in the past three months as it has Galaxy S phones over the past two years.

Apple, on the other hand, is seen as being a bit too new-iPhone-dependent for its own good, a reliance that’s preventing its smartphone sales from reaching Samsung’s lofty heights. (We’ve speculated previously that a pre-paid iPhone would be smart move on Apple’s part.)

Samsung’s projected success comes as many investors brace for weak earnings from technology companies this quarter. So while the tech sector may be bracing for a slump, it’s doesn’t seem as if Samsung will contribute to it.

Photo: Devindra Hardawar/VentureBeat

July 9-10, 2013
San Francisco, CA

Early Bird Tickets on Sale

Apple’s ubiquitous iPhone is now outselling all other smartphones combined, including prominent Android devices, on AT&T and Sprint, according to new data from Canaccord Genuity.

“We believe iPhones are outselling all other smartphones combined at Sprint and AT&T and selling at roughly equal volume to all Android smartphones at Verizon,” Canaccord Genuity analyst told AllThingsD today.

That’s quite the achievement for Apple’s popularity. The iPhone came out on top even with strong Android challengers like Samsung’s Galaxy S II and Galaxy Nexus phones and other Android devices. Sprint sold 1.8 million iPhone 4S devices last quarter while AT&T activated 7.6 million iPhone units in its last quarter.

The iPhone has been successful around the world, but the U.S. is its biggest stronghold. Canaccord Genuity said that Apple’s biggest threat for market share in the near term for Europe and Asia would be Samsung, which posted strong gains in the “seasonally weak” March quarter.

Click the table below for a more detailed look at the carrier smartphone share data:

With record-high Cyber Monday and Black Friday sales, online retailers came out as winners this year. The music industry, especially because of the sales of holiday music, had a strong season as well. Given that many people flock to the movies for Christmas, its no surprise that box office sales were up more than 60 percent for the Christmas weekend. And smartphones had a fabulous holiday season too because of a 140 percent increase in iPhone and Android activations.

But not every company benefited from the holiday season. According to Reuters, Sears’ and Kmart’s sales are down 5 percent from this time last year. Sears Corporation owns both retailers and announced Wednesday that it will be closing many Kmart and Sears stores next year. Kmart was hit hardest in its electronics department, which faces stiff competition from Walmart and Target. Sears is suffering from empty stores and lower quality shopping experiences.

For most businesses, this year’s sales figures for the holidays were strong. But for stores that entered the fourth quarter struggling to stay strong in the marketplace, this shopping season didn’t offer much help. For more stats on the holiday winners and losers, check out the infographic below.

[Infographic via FastUpFront]