New data from market analyst firm CIRP shows that in the past fiscal quarter, the iPhone XR was the best-selling iPhone model in the US, accounting for about 40% of total iPhone sales. Interestingly, iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max add up to just over 25%. Unsurprisingly, the iPhone XS is the least popular of the three new iPhones in 2018, with iPhone XS Max selling more than twice as much, and the iPhone XR selling more than the iPhone XS Max. The report also mentions that as more and more users realize the importance of purchasing products that are higher than standard entry models, the upgraded storage options will greatly help Apple improve its performance in the coming years.
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CIRP said that since the first iPhone was introduced, Apple has been upgrading storage as an option. Over the years, each storage upgrade has a premium of $100. The price of the iPhone storage upgrade has now increased to $200, depending on the phone model and storage capacity.
In the fourth quarter of 2018, the proportion of iPhone users paying for increased storage increased from 33% in the same period last year to 38%. Based on higher prices associated with larger storage space and the iPhone model combination sold this quarter, CIRP estimates that Apple will increase the average iPhone price to over $800.
Apple plans to release its first-quarter earnings for the 2019 fiscal year on January 29, but Apple has previously announced that it will no longer disclose specific sales of product lines such as iPhone, iPad, and Mac in its earnings data. Prior to that, Apple announced that it had lowered its revenue forecast for the quarter, which is Apple’s first revision of revenue expectations in 16 years.