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Apple's US iPhone installed base growth slowed dramatically last quarter
The long-term success of Apple Arcade and Apple TV+ is largely dependent on the iPhone installed based. During a recent earnings call, Apple revealed that its global installed base reached record levels during the past quarter and new data gathered by the Consumer Intelligence Research Partners (CIRP) suggests this was also the case in the US.
A survey of 500 Apple customers contacted between September 29 and October 10 indicates the iPhone US installed base reached 204 million units during the July-September quarter. This number is Apple’s highest ever and is up from just 181 million users a year earlier. However, not everything is positive.
According to CIRP, the increasingly saturated smartphone market combined with slow iPhone sales and a lower number of Android switchers meant Apple’s US iPhone installed base growth dropped to the lowest levels registered by CIRP since it started tracking iPhone sales in 2012. Fortunately, consumers are now keeping their iPhones for longer than ever which means the overall size of Apple’s installed base is protected.
In regards to Apple’s other products, CIRP claims almost 25% of US customers now own an Apple TV while 20% have reportedly purchased an Apple Watch. The company’s AirPods, on the other hand, are owned by about 7% of people and the penetration of Beats products continues to grow.
The current quarter is typically Apple’s strongest and the iPhone 11 is performing strongly which means a big boost to the iPhone installed base in the US market is to be expected. AirPods popularity should also continue to grow thanks to the recently released AirPods Pro but it’ll remain to be seen how the company’s other products perform.
