“Sales of the iPod are in decline,” Rex Crum reorts for MarketWatch. “Over the past four quarters, unit sales are down 12.5% from the prior year, while revenue has fallen by 6.2%.”
MacDailyNews Take: Sales of the iPod are not in decline when you remember that every iPhone and iPad contains an iPod built right in. When you count all of the iPods sold — hardware and software iPods combined — it’s obvious that sales of the iPod are on the increase. Then you can properly analyze the potential of Apple’s music and music-related products.
Crum continues, “That’s probably why more than half of September has gone by without a single word from Apple about what has for several years been a company tradition — holding an event during September devoted to the newest versions of, and changes to, the iPod. (On Wednesday, reports emerged of an Apple event for Oct. 4 that will feature a new iPhone, not an iPod… ‘The timing is simple,’ said Andy Hargreaves, an analyst with Pacific Crest. ‘They are launching a new iPhone and want the event to be very close to the actual launch of the device so sales don’t slow.'”
Read more in the full article here.
Huh? That’s his reasoning? So that all attention is focused on the launch of the iPhone 5?
iPods are less relevant. They used to be announced in September to fully capitalize on the christmas sales boom.
Now the iPhone gets to capitalize on it. The iPhone is the new iPod, though I expect some announcements about the iPod line (as well as the iPod touch) will be made also.
Could be.
Yes, it is timing, and with the ink new CEO Tim Cook’s business card barely dry I think October is about the soonest they could get things ready for announcement after the shuffle.
With all the focus on the iPhone, maybe new iPods are the next ‘one more thing.’
What about ipod? I like it but refuse to pay high montly fee for the iphone.
It shows either a lack of knowledge or absolute idiocy of these anal-ist who think that the iPod is limited to the Touch, Nano, Shuffle and Classic models… every iPhone and iPad contains an “iPod” and I use the iPod in my iPhone 4 as the music source in my car and to stream to the bluetooth adapter on my stereo in the bedroom.. No XM, FM or AM for me, iTunes playlist rule.
Yes our iPhones have iPod apps but that doesn’t make them iPods!!
Oh you are sooooo wrong iPod is not only a hardware line but a software line to that’s like saying a phone isn’t a gps device because it’s ran as software and not hardware
point well made………………….
MDN (as well as buddabob), that’s a bit misguided.
Every analysts knows full well that an iPhone contains a media player feature.
Sales of the iPod (you know, the hardware product line, that is NOT called an iPhone) are in decline, and the reason is that the product line is cannibalised by the iPhone. In fact, entire product category (personal music players) has been cannibalised by the smart phones, and Apple’s iPod line has been resisting this trend much better than the competitors (SanDisk, Sony, Creative, plus myriad no-name Chinese devices).
Apple is likely soon going to start preparing for exit from the PMP market, with the iPod touch remaining probably the last of the iPods still in production. How soon is anyone’s guess, but I give it no more than 3 years. The number of people who don’t have an iPhone (or another smartphone) keeps dwindling and will eventually disappear, and those are the primary market for the iPod line.
Apple came into this market 10 years ago. It re-defined it, dominated it, and will eventually exit it while still dominant. When it does, whatever’s left of that market will only be attractive to the no-name Chinese devices that sell at Wal-Mart check-out counters for $20.
MDN stop saying an iPhone sale is an iPod sale just because the iphone has an iPod app. Its NOT the same fracking thing !
Next big thing… iPod touches are now 3G capable…BOOM !
Those are called iPhones.
Not necessarily. Imagine they only do data and get really good FaceTime/VoIP/etc support, the need for phone functionality will be redefined.
I also don’t agree with MDN bundling iPods and iPhones, although I get their point. But from a hardware device perspective, it is true that iPhone sales are probably reducing iPod sales.
But I’d also like to suggest that the latest nano was a bit of a miss-step, at least as far as I’m concerned. Part of the nano’s usability was a function of it’s simplicity and tactile controls. Its funny that Steve and Apple (according to last year’s iPod keynote) respected the importance of buttons on the shuffle and removed them from the nano. Give the nano tactile controls again and I’ll probably buy one in a heartbeat (especially if it goes back to the fat nano form factor). And I already have a fat nano and an iPhone.
My 2 cents. Keep the change.
I’m not sure what to make of the iPod’s future. In all iOS devices, starting with the iOS 5 update, all “iPod” icons will be changed to “Music” ones (much like the iPod touch is already). I see this becoming a potential problem with the iPhone as (currently) the. Iseo features are built in to iPod, and iPad and iPod touch have their video icons separate. I’m not one for jail breaking like I was in 2007, but, by damn it, I will be determined to keep the beloved iPod icon on both my iPad and iPhone. There needs to be a petition for this, as I do not see this going over well with Apple supporters and investors alike. Who doesn’t want the iPhone & iPad to not be considered an iPod? Not me!
Yes, iPod sales are in decline. That’s because iPhone sales are skyrocketing, and many people (myself included) don’t need a separate iPod when we have our iPhones.
Apple is doing the iPod justice though, by having the top-of-the-line iPod touch and then specializing the nano and shuffle to be basically workout-centric music players. There’s no need for the older nano any longer that could play movies, had the camera, etc. That’s what phones are for these days.
iPod sales will never regain their prior level, but they will continue to be very important parts of Apple’s sales makeup.
New Ipods will be coming check target, sams club this week they are all on sale
This analyst is genius.
iPod sales are declining, hence there is no September update. Or there is no September update because iPod sales are declining.
So, obviously, iPhone sales are declining, hence there was no June update. Or there was no June update because iPhone sales are declining.
8|
Here are my personal wishes for iPods this year…
iPod touch – Upgrade to match latest iPhone’s non-phone specs.
iPod classic – Keep it going. Why not…? If there’s a new higher capacity Toshiba mini hard drive in same thinness as current 160GB (such as 200GB), use that drive. Or cancel it.
iPod mini – Re-release a new version of the old-school iPod nano. The one with click wheel, video camera, and larger rectangle non-touch screen. And bring back that old “mini” name, or if current iPod classic is canceled, call it iPod classic.
iPod nano – Same as current iPod nano, in new colors. Lower price a bit.
iPod shuffle – Same as current iPod shuffle, in new colors. The shuffle is (for what it is) already the ideal design.
>>MacDailyNews Take: Sales of the iPod are not in decline when you remember that every iPhone and iPad contains an iPod built right in. When you count all of the iPods sold — hardware and software iPods combined — it’s obvious that sales of the iPod are on the increase.<<
Stop it! … Just stop it! It's obvious that they are talking about the hardware iPod. The one that says "iPod" on the box when you buy it.