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Apple’s preorders for iPhone 6s models are coming in so quickly that the company believes that it could exceed the all-time iPhone first-weekend sales records that were set with the release of the company’s iPhone 6 models in September 2014.
“Customer response to iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus has been extremely positive and preorders this weekend were very strong around the world,” the company said in a statement to eWEEK. “We are on pace to beat last year’s 10 million unit first-weekend record when the new iPhones go on sale September 25.”
In its statement, Apple said that it is working to build and ship enough new iPhone 6s smartphones to meet the global demand based on preorders and the Sept. 25 release date.
“As many customers noticed, the online demand for iPhone 6s Plus has been exceptionally strong and exceeded our own forecasts for the preorder period,” Apple said. “We are working to catch up as quickly as we can, and we will have iPhone 6s Plus as well as iPhone 6s units available at Apple retail stores when they open next Friday.”
The standing Apple iPhone first-weekend sales record was set in September 2014 when more than 10 million iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus smartphones were sold in the three-day weekend after they debuted, according to an earlier eWEEK report. That was the largest number of iPhones ever sold by the company over the first weekend of an iPhone release since the devices first hit the market back in June of 2007. Preorders for the then-new iPhone 6 models also reached huge levels, with more than 4 million devices preordered within 24 hours of the process opening on Sept. 12, just seven days before the official device launch date.
Those huge iPhone 6 sales figures led in January to Apple’s best-ever financial quarter, when the company posted $74.6 billion in revenue and $18 billion in net profits for the first fiscal quarter of 2015 due to a consumer frenzy of sales of its latest iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus smartphones, Mac computers and sales of apps and more in the company’s App Store.
The $74.6 billion in revenue was a 30 percent increase over the $57.6 billion in revenue that was posted for the same quarter one year prior while the $18 billion in net profit was up 37 percent from the $13.1 billion net profit that was posted in the same quarter one year prior.
The record revenue and profit numbers were driven by record sales of iPhone 6 models. Revenue for iPhones in the quarter totaled $51.2 billion, which was up from $32.5 billion for the same quarter one year prior, on sales of 74.5 million iPhones around the world. That was an increase of 46 percent compared to the 51 million iPhones Apple sold one year prior in the same quarter. International sales of Apple devices accounted for 65 percent of the quarter’s revenue.
Apple’s latest iPhone 6s models were unveiled Sept. 9 by the company in a splashy two-hour event in San Francisco.
The new iPhone 6s includes a 4.7-inch display, while the 6s Plus includes a 5.5-inch display, both of which are wrapped in a new stronger cover glass. Both new phones are built around Apple’s fastest smartphone chip, the A9, which is a third generation 64-bit chip.
Meanwhile, the cameras on the latest devices also got a major upgrade, through the addition of an all-new 12MP iSight camera that has 50 percent more pixels than earlier devices. Both phones are also now capable of 4K video, run on iOS 9 and include new 5MP FaceTime HD front cameras.
Other iPhone 6s updates include higher performance, better cameras and a new feature called 3D Touch that adds new input capabilities for users to help them get the most out of the devices. 3D Touch is the latest generation of Apple’s established multi-touch input system. It not only recognizes familiar gestures, but also the amount of force being provided by a user on the screen.
Preorders for the new iPhones begin Sept. 12 while the devices will go on sale on Sept. 25 in the U.S., China, France, the United Kingdom, Japan, Australia and other nations.
Prices for the iPhone 6s will start at $199 on a two-year contract for a 16GB model and range to $399 for a 128GB version. Prices for the iPhone 6s Plus will start at $299 for a 16GB model and range to $499 for a 128GB version.
Apple is also introducing a new iPhone Upgrade Program that will allow customers to pay a monthly rate for their device, starting at $32 per month for 24 months, and allow them to get a new model each year.