The holiday quarter is a traditionally auspicious period for Apple, driving unrivaled revenue and profit scores year after year as new and improved iPhone generations typically come out at just the right time to top the Christmas shopping lists of many millions of customers around the world.
While the mainstream appeal of this fall's iPhone 13 quartet was perhaps more evident than that of several previous entries in the same incredibly successful family, the global chip shortage that greatly impacted everyone from Samsung to, well, Apple made a bunch of analysts hesitant of predicting the usual record-breaking sales numbers.
As it turns out, the Cupertino-based tech giant somehow managed to navigate these unprecedented challenges with grace, ending the uncertain October - December 2021 timeframe in a stronger position than anyone anticipated on multiple fronts, at least according to one financial analyst quoted by MacRumors and Philip Elmer-DeWitt's Apple 3.0 blog.
Excellent iPhone 13 results behind... and ahead
Commercially released at the very end of last year's third calendar quarter in most key global markets, the 5G-enabled iPhone 13, 13 mini, 13 Pro, and 13 Pro Max purportedly exceeded a combined 40 million unit shipments during Q4.
In case you're wondering, that's a higher number than all of the smartphones sold by companies like Oppo, Huawei, or Vivo back in Q4 2020, not to mention lower-ranked brands like Motorola, Nokia, or OnePlus.
iPhone 13 Pro Max vs iPhone 12 Pro Max
Although it's unclear how many iPhone 12-series devices were sold worldwide between October and December 2020, this 40 million tally is labeled as a new record for Apple, and with the help of older models like the iPhone 12, it could lead to a new overall quarterly vendor record as Samsung and Xiaomi are left in the dust... temporarily, at least.
Then again, multiple reports over the last couple of months suggested that the company drastically reduced the production of previous iPhone generations, as well as iPads of all sizes and categories, to handle demand for the newest, greatest, and priciest iOS handsets.
Impressively, said demand still surpassed supply by a total of roughly 12 million units, and top Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives believes those buyers won't go anywhere, boosting Apple's 2022-opening sales figures as parts shortages are expected to finally go away... at some point this year.
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Bottom line, the iPhone 13 family is tipped to sell like hotcakes between January and March and even between April and June 2022, and of course, that's not the only hugely profitable thing Apple can look forward to this year... and beyond.
Services are growing and growing and growing
That's right, we're not talking about the first-ever 5G-capable iPhone SE, widely expected to break cover this quarter, let alone the distant iPhone 14 lineup.
Instead, Apple will continue to heavily rely on its thriving "Services" business to get closer to the $3 trillion (!!!) valuation milestone. Said milestone, mind you, could be hit by the end of 2022, with the Services segment alone believed to be worth around $1.5 trillion already.
The App Store has been a major cash cow for a long time, and that's unlikely to change anytime soon
Apple's "golden installed base" is spending more and more money on everything from iOS apps to cloud storage, music streaming, video streaming, and warranty services, with the division's 2020 revenue crossing the $50 billion mark and a $100 billion milestone projected for 2024 after gradual increases between now and then.
Apple services and hardware are expected to be closely connected this year, growing at a similarly fast pace as "iFans" continue to upgrade their outdated "iDevices" and splash the rest of their cash on various other "iPerks" and add-ons making top Apple investors richer and richer.
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Adrian, a mobile technology enthusiast since the Nokia 3310 era, has been a dynamic presence in the tech journalism field, contributing to Android Authority, Digital Trends, and Pocketnow before joining PhoneArena in 2018. His expertise spans across various platforms, with a particular fondness for the diversity of the Android ecosystem. Despite the challenges of balancing full-time parenthood with his work, Adrian's passion for tech trends, running, and movies keeps him energized. His commitment to mid-range smartphones has led to an eclectic collection of devices, saved from personal bankruptcy by his preference for 'adequate' over 'overpriced'.
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