The early evidence suggests that during their first couple of weeks of availability, the iPhone 16 models started more slowly than the comparable iPhone 15 models a year ago, according to new data from Consumer Intelligence Research Partners (CIRP).
After the pandemic upset iPhone launch schedules, data on the recently introduced iPhone 16 models are truly comparable to the iPhone 15 models in 2023. Finally, all new iPhone models were sold on the same schedule for two successive years.
Apple introduced its new iPhone 16 models in early September for sales starting September 20, 2024. They include the base iPhone 16 and larger iPhone 16 Plus, and premium iPhone 16 Pro and its larger partner, iPhone 16 Pro Max.
Since CIRP compares model shares to those in the year-ago September 2023 quarter and Apple continues to sell legacy models for three years, only retiring the Pro and Pro Max models (which even then still overlap the new Pros within the quarter), CIRP has a chart with sixteen separate models across the two quarters, and twelve in each quarter.
In the September 2024 quarter, the new iPhone 16 models combined for a 20% share of total US iPhone sales, below the 29% share for the then-new iPhone 15 models in September 2023. The high-end Pro and Pro Max models accounted for 12% of sales, compared to 15% for iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max in September 2023.
The oldest phones were consistent over the two September quarters. The iPhone 13 and older models accounted for 26% of iPhones sold in the US in 2023, and the iPhone 14 and older models accounted for 24% this year.
The shift was in sales of the year-old phones. In the September 2023 quarter, the iPhone 14 models accounted for 46% of unit sales. In the September 2024 quarter the iPhone 15 models accounted for 56% of sales. That 10% shift was from the newly launched phones.
