Citi Research cut first quarter production estimates for Apple’s iPhones, Reuters reported Friday, joining a list of other analysts lowering forecasts amid reports of weak demand. Citi projects Apple to make 45 million phones in the quarter, down from 50 million it forecast earlier. The brokerage firm lowered the forecast for the iPhone XS Max, which starts at $1,099, by 48 percent. Apple didn’t comment.
Supporting Adobe Analytics online sales data showing Apple’s iPad as a leading seller during the holiday season (see 1812200038), Localytics blogged Friday that iPads topped the list of new device activations during the period. Localytics determines lift in device activations by calculating the percentage change in new devices in the days around Christmas vs. new devices in the average week for the same period. IPad sales were buoyed by strong Apple discounting during the holidays at Amazon, Walmart and Target, where consumers saved $100 on the 32 GB model and $80 on the 128 GB model, it noted. In 2016, iPads dominated the leaderboards for device activations over the Christmas holiday, and last year Google’s Pixel 2 phones and the latest trio of iPhones took the first five spots. The analytics firm expected the iPhone XR, released in late October, to lead device activation lifts over Christmas -- as it did over Black Friday weekend -- but the XR failed to beat the newest iPad, iPad Pro and iPad mini 4, it said. Lift in activations around Christmas vs. the previous three weeks were 219 percent for the sixth-generation iPad, 125 percent for the iPad Pro, 108 percent for the iPad mini 4 and 99 percent for the iPad Pro 4 vs. 88 percent for the iPhone XR, it said. Still, the XR had a strong Christmas, with activations over the Christmas period growing by 88 percent vs. 49 percent for the iPhone XS and 36 percent for the XS Max, it said. In iPhone market share through Dec. 27, the iPhone 7 led with 15.91 percent, followed by the 6S (11.6 percent), X (11.57 percent), 7 Plus (10.54 percent), 6 (9.47 percent), 8 Plus (9.43 percent) and 8 (9 percent).
LG is touting Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant voice control in its newest SmarThinQ smart washer and dryer debuting at CES. Users can issue voice commands to turn the appliances on or off, pause a load and monitor status, said the company. A smart pairing function in the dryer chooses the optimal setting for the drying cycle, it said, and the dual inverter heat pump dryer can run two loads at once, while drying a third at low temperature, it said.
Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey and NBA Commissioner Adam Silver will discuss their partnership, #NBATwitter, at CES in Las Vegas, said CTA Thursday. The discussion, moderated by ESPN anchor Rachel Nichols, is scheduled for 1:30 p.m., at the CES Sports Zone stage in the Aria, Primrose Ballroom 2-3.
Wireless charging company Energous announced the first WattUp-enabled customer product to receive FCC approval for marketing and sale in the U.S. The company first said it planned to develop reference designs for embedded WattUp charging capabilities in SK Telesys products for the Asian and global markets in 2014. SK Telesys showed a personal sound amplification product (PSAP) and smart ID card using WattUp technology at CES 2017 (see 1701040018). Energous CEO Stephen Rizzone called the FCC’s approval of the PSAP, from SK Telesys partner Delight, a positive announcement for the company because it means the first WattUp-enabled consumer product moving into full commercial production “with anticipated availability in Q1.” Rizzone acknowledged multiple delays for the product, maintaining the “customer funnel is robust” for CE products in “growing vertical markets” for full production in 2019. PSAPs, used to assist with hearing loss, are available without a prescription and tend to cost less than hearing aids, said Energous. WattUp wireless charging technology allows users to recharge the Delight PSAP by placing it on the included WattUp charging pad. Energous is also working on over-the-air charging, but no products have been announced.
Consumers are looking for easy-to-understand and practical smart features, said a Thursday Whirlpool study. The survey of more than 2,000 homeowners and renters in four global regions said 72 percent of consumers want simpler, faster ways to manage their lives, and more than half feel that cooking (52 percent) and doing laundry (58 percent) take up more time than they would like. Consumers are very interested in smart appliances that manage water usage, said the study. Three-fourths of respondents indicated interest in smart appliance features that reduce food waste, and 64 percent said it was important for appliances to help save on electricity costs. Whirlpool plans to introduce more than 20 products and services at CES.
The iPhone XR had 32 percent of total U.S. iPhone sales in the 30 days after its October launch, said a Wednesday Consumer Intelligence Research Partners report. The higher-priced XS and XS Max, released a month earlier, together had 35 percent of U.S. iPhone sales during the period. Among iPhone buyers for the period, 82 percent upgraded from an iPhone and 16 percent from an Android phone, CIRP said, vs. the period after the November 2017 launch of iPhone X, when 86 percent of customers upgraded from an iPhone and 11 percent from an Android model. Noting that Apple doesn’t state its launch strategy, analyst Mike Levin inferred from pricing and features that the company positioned the XR “to appeal to potential operating systems switchers from Android.” Apple didn't comment. Findings are based on a survey of 165 U.S. iPhone buyers in the U.S. in the 30 days after Oct. 26.
Q3 wearable device shipments in Europe, the Middle East and Africa grew 55 percent year over year to 6.6 million units, reported IDC Friday. It’s forecasting a 66 percent increase in EMEA smartwatch shipments this year to 16.1 million units, and a doubling of shipments to 31.8 million units in 2022. Though smart wearables “continue to grow strongly in Western Europe driven by the success of smartwatches, basic wearables excelled” in Central and Eastern Europe and the Middle East and Africa in Q3 on the success of Xiaomi, it said. The Chinese vendor “flooded the market with its low-end Mi Band 3 wristband,” making it a “top seller in EMEA," said IDC.
Sonos, running promotions throughout the holiday season, doubled down Friday, emailing customers it's offering free, same-day delivery through Christmas Eve. It offered to set up a speaker to customers who choose “up&running” at checkout. The free delivery option is handled through Enjoy, which works with Sonos for delivery and setup to select ZIP codes via appointment. Appointment cutoff on Monday is 5 p.m., it said. The company continued to push its deal for $20 off a single Sonos One speaker and $50 off two.
The consumer virtual reality hardware market will be a $5 billion global business opportunity by 2023, said ABI Research Thursday. It views 2018 as a “significant year” for augmented reality, with “with new entrants in the market, new smart glasses launched, new and improved platforms and portfolios, and generally more enthusiasm and curiosity from the public to explore the technology." Heavy market “fragmentation and scarcity of content” is plaguing consumer VR hardware growth, but it’s confident “this is decreasing over time.”