Apple is preparing for the biggest iPhone launch ever, according to sources familiar with the company’s supply chain. A Chinese publication says Apple’s suppliers Foxconn will manufacture 90 million units for 2014 alone.
This is quite the number, considering Apple only managed to ship 51 million units last year with the iPhone 5S and 5C combined. In 2014, Apple may look to deploy the iPhone 6 in two separate models, both larger than the iPhone 5S.
The large number coming for 2014 also implies that Apple will launch the iPhone 6 earlier than Fall 2014, changing the launch date Apple has stuck to for the past two years. We may see the iPhone 6 come to WWDC or another event Apple has planned in the Summer.
In the full 2013 calendar year, Apple managed to sell 150 million iPhone’s around the world, still more than last year but showing a lack of big growth in the smartphone market, something that is putting investors of Apple and Samsung on tilt.
This year, Apple hopes to push themselves back into the market with new sizes for the iPhone 6. We expect to see a 4.7-inch device and a 5.5-inch phablet, alongside a new iPhone 5C for developing markets.
This would give Apple the same room to sell smartphones Samsung has had for the past two years, instead of just having one 4-inch device that does not offer a lot to consumers who want 5-inch devices.
The iPhone 6 will be direct competition with the Galaxy S5, the iPhablet will be Apple’s answer to the Galaxy Note and we could see the iPhone Color as a real competitor in the low-end against some of Samsung’s cheaper devices.
Whatever the case, if Apple is putting out big numbers on top of the iWatch sales, we are expecting them to have a very good year in terms of sales and profit.
