Christmas Day in the United States is traditionally the single greatest day for new smartphone activations. Despite supply chain delays caused by COVID-19 shutdowns, Apple launched its 5G-capable iPhone 12 family in time for the holidays. The result: Apple iPhone dominated U.S. smartphone activations on Christmas Day 2020.
According to Flurry, Christmas Day smartphone activations this year were down 23% year-over-year, likely due to financial hardships caused by COVID-19 shutdowns.
Apple Dominates the Top 10: Although Christmas Day smartphone activations were down compared to Christmas in 2019, make no mistake that a lot of Americans still got new smartphones this Christmas.
In the bar chart above, we list the ten most activated smartphones on Christmas day. The gray dashed line represents the 7 day average number of daily activations leading up to Christmas and the labels denote the percent change between Christmas day and the trailing average. For example, the iPhone 11 was the most activated device on Christmas day, with activations 5% higher versus the 7 day average between December 18 to December 24. In the case of the iPhone XR, the number of activations on Christmas day was relatively equal to the trailing 7 day average, meaning it was not necessarily a popular gift for Christmas, but remains a popular smartphone for Apple customers.
Apple iPhone devices took nine of the top ten spots, with LG’s budget K30 the only other manufacturer to make the list. Last year’s iPhone 11 takes the #1 spot for the second consecutive year, followed by the 2018 iPhone XR. This year’s most premium device, the iPhone 12 Pro Max takes third place. Typically, Apple’s highest-end devices surge at launch as early adopters rush out to buy the most advanced Apple smartphone available. As the masses slowly replace their old devices, the base model—this year the iPhone 12—typically gains in popularity. But as we reported in an earlier post, the iPhone 12 Pro Max had the strongest launch week out of any Apple iPhone device in the past three years, indicating a strong and long-lasting demand for their most premium smartphone.
MacDailyNews Take: iPhone 12 Pro Max is so good, it’s hard to describe except to say that it’s insanely great!
