Apple Inc. said it has sold more than 1.7 million i-Phone 4s within the first three days of the phone's launch, reaffirming its dominance in the Smartphone business despite more and more smart phones coming to market.
The strong start underlined the continued dominance of Apple's products. The company said the sales over the first three days made it Apple’s most successful launch in the company history.
"It's amazing how the fourth iteration of a product could generate the longest lines and the strongest sales yet," said Walter Piecyk, an analyst at BTIG Research.
He noted sales were "clearly stronger" since the iPhone 3GS sold 1 million units in its first three days.
Apple shares were up 0.1% in recent trading at $267.
The latest incarnation of the device, which was launched three years ago to throngs of enthusiasts and has become the company's biggest seller went on sale across the globe in stores on Thursday. Apple said it took advance orders for more than 600,000 new iPhones worldwide on the first day it was available, the most ever taken by the company in a single day.
In an attempt to counter its success other firms have released numerous versions of their own Smartphones, the most recent offerings include the Motorola Inc. Droid X, which was unveiled at a press conference a day before the iPhone 4 launch, and Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd’s Galaxy S, which will be sold by three of the four national carriers.
While many early iPhone 4 customers owned the previous versions, the product continues to attract new consumers as well, Piecyk said.
Analysts have been expecting the new model to help Apple sell about 36 million iPhones in the fiscal year ending in September, up 73% from the prior fiscal year.