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iPhone 17 iPhone Air a Flop, 17 Pro a Massive Hit

blairh

blairh

macrumors 603
Original poster
Dec 11, 2007
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First quarter sales are in from CIRP.

My main takeaways:

Base model iPhone 17 on par with 16. I thought it would be higher (versus last year) given the numerous strong sales reports since its release.

The 17 Pro has far succeeded the 16 Pro. Not sure why that would be. Very surprising.

The Air is selling worse than the 16 Plus in the same time frame. Not a surprise given its limitations and premium price.

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Keep in mind the base 17 faced a lot of global stock-out issues, even in December. Given that situation, some of those sales probably went to the 16e.

A new form factor usually results in a demand uptick. The fact Air performed worse than Plus really shows how extremely poorly it was received.

Data like this really tells you how much of an echo chamber forums can be. If you believed some of those guys, you’d think the Air was the top selling device on the planet.
 
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blairh said:
First quarter sales are in from CIRP.

My main takeaways:

Base model iPhone 17 on par with 16. I thought it would be higher (versus last year) given the numerous strong sales reports since its release.

The 17 Pro has far succeeded the 16 Pro. Not sure why that would be. Very surprising.

The Air is selling worse than the 16 Plus in the same time frame. Not a surprise given its limitations and premium price.

View attachment 2600095
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Some excellent numbers being done by 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max, especially given the stock issues.
I have seen A LOT of 17 Pro Max out in the wild here in South Africa, cannot go to a festival, airport, office, company event, wedding etc… without spotting a few of them.

The Air unfortunately will be a lesson for Apple, if they strip features they must lower pricing, hoping to see at least a 4000mAh battery, Stereo Speakers and dual camera setup in the Air 2. It being Titanium doesn’t help if there are major compromises, they would be better off putting a standard chip in the Air 2 and not a watered down Pro chip.
 
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xxFoxtail said:
These were strange to see side by side.
View attachment 2600181

Sadly, seems like my favorite iPhones lately are flops. I like the iPhone minis, and I like the Air.
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The poster who created the second thread... didn't even read his own source.

Global Handset Model Sales Tracker, January 2024 - September 2025

If you kneecap the iPhone 17 sales data, of course it'll be skewed.
 
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Tsepz said:
Some excellent numbers being done by 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max, especially given the stock issues.
I have seen A LOT of 17 Pro Max out in the wild here in South Africa, cannot go to a festival, airport, office, company event, wedding etc… without spotting a few of them.

The Air unfortunately will be a lesson for Apple, if they strip features they must lower pricing, hoping to see at least a 4000mAh battery, Stereo Speakers and dual camera setup in the Air 2. It being Titanium doesn’t help if there are major compromises, they would be better off putting a standard chip in the Air 2 and not a watered down Pro chip.
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Stereo Speakers , Dual Cameras and usb 3.2 gets my sale
 
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I don't think Apple expected the 17 Air to be more than a niche product. Watch the 18 Air address the camera issues with a more robust camera setup. Buying the first generation of an Apple product means you never have to prove your bravery.
 
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rambo47 said:
I don't think Apple expected the 17 Air to be more than a niche product. Watch the 18 Air address the camera issues with a more robust camera setup.
Click to expand...

The problem is, even with a second rear lens, people would still pay $100 more for the 18 Pro because of better camera and battery life. Consumers who want value will wait for 18 base. The Air is a classic, "stuck in the middle" product.
 
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Ctrlos said:
Number of ads for the Pro: dozens

Number of ads for the Air: Zero
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Damn. If Air needs ads, then SE2/3 must have been an epic miracle of the greatest proportion.

Somehow, the SE got 5% sales with no reviews, social media coverage, or Tim Cook holding it on stage. Zero fanfare.

Let's not make excuses. The Air was advertised at all 500+ Apple Stores worldwide, many of those prime locations. Tim Cook even livestreamed it on TikTok. Imagine if other models like the base 17 got that kind of coverage.

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JPack said:
Damn. If Air needs ads, then SE2/3 must have been an epic miracle of the greatest proportion.

Somehow, the SE got 5% sales with no reviews, social media coverage, or Tim Cook holding it on stage. Zero fanfare.

Let's not make excuses. The Air was advertised at all 500+ Apple Stores worldwide, many of those prime locations. Tim Cook even livestreamed it on TikTok. Imagine if other models like the base 17 got that kind of coverage.
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Thats not an equal comparison because the SE models sold by the pallet load to IT suppliers and corporate customers. The iPhone Air is over double the price and not aimed at that market at all.
 
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Ctrlos said:
Thats not an equal comparison because the SE models sold by the pallet load to IT suppliers and corporate customers. The iPhone Air is over double the price and not aimed at that market at all.
Click to expand...

CIRP surveys 500 consumers for their data, not corporate buyers.
 
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JPack said:
Damn. If Air needs ads, then SE2/3 must have been an epic miracle of the greatest proportion.

Somehow, the SE got 5% sales with no reviews, social media coverage, or Tim Cook holding it on stage. Zero fanfare.

Let's not make excuses. The Air was advertised at all 500+ Apple Stores worldwide, many of those prime locations. Tim Cook even livestreamed it on TikTok. Imagine if other models like the base 17 got that kind of coverage.

View attachment 2600282

View attachment 2600283
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Yep, the Pro and the Air seemed to be the most advertised, where they had Pro they also had Air.
 
blairh said:
First quarter sales are in from CIRP.

My main takeaways:

Base model iPhone 17 on par with 16. I thought it would be higher (versus last year) given the numerous strong sales reports since its release.

The 17 Pro has far succeeded the 16 Pro. Not sure why that would be. Very surprising.

The Air is selling worse than the 16 Plus in the same time frame. Not a surprise given its limitations and premium price.
Click to expand...
the air wasn't available in several countries (e.g. china) from release due to regulatory hurdles, several countries require a physical sim slot and the air had to get special approval first. So we're not comparing equal timespans here.

On top of that, the Air doesn't need to sell so much to still be a great money-maker. The Air is more expensive than the 16 plus was, AND that allows for the Pro's to get even more expensive. Every Air sold makes more money than a plus sold, and every pro now makes more money because the Air fills the old Pro slot price-wise.
 
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Contact_Feanor said:
On top of that, the Air doesn't need to sell so much to still be a great money-maker. The Air is more expensive than the 16 plus was, AND that allows for the Pro's to get even more expensive. Every Air sold makes more money than a plus sold, and every pro now makes more money because the Air fills the old Pro slot price-wise.
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It's so strange how people love to give money to Apple at any price, rather than pushing the company to sell its devices at more affordable rates for consumers! They even seem happy when Apple gets excessively rich from consumers' money. Stockholm syndrome?
 
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Macdctr said:
I have had my Air since pre-ordering it and have been pleased with it so far. It is my primary iPhone.

I could care less what the sales data have to put out with regards to percentages of sales for each device. I look at which device “works” for my use case. To me this is what matters . . .
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It does mean that a lack of sales might influence whether the Air has a successor though. Lots of people loved their iPhone Mini's and it was very popular on here like the Air is now, but ultimately demand wasn't there globally and it was canned.
 
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The-Real-Deal82 said:
It does mean that a lack of sales might influence whether the Air has a successor though. Lots of people loved their iPhone Mini's and it was very popular on here like the Air is now, but ultimately demand wasn't there globally and it was canned.
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and this is why I will be getting a 1TB Cloud White Air and keep this device sealed in my collection . . .
 
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