iPhone X launches worldwide at 8am local time on Friday, but Apple still enjoyed a successful financial quarter on the back of older iPhones, Mac computers, and even the shaky iPad.
Apple sold 46.7 million iPhone devices in the last three months, up 14% in phones sold from the quarter previous and 3% from the same time last year. Though iPhone revenue was only up 2%, Apple's overall revenue for the fourth quarter was $52.6 billion, up 12% from last year.
Apple sold 46.7 million iPhones in the last three months
It has been just over a month since the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus went on sale, and while the response to these iterative devices has been somewhat muted, these phones still likely boosted numbers along with the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus.
But this is all before the highly anticipated 10th anniversary iPhone X (pronounced "10") has even hit store shelves. The new iPhone, which boasts advanced Face ID recognition, an all-glass back, augmented reality features and Animoji animated emoji, will be a hot seller beginning November 3 and well into the Christmas shopping season.
During Apple's earnings call, CEO Tim Cook said orders for the iPhone X have already been "very strong." He said the company expects the upcoming holiday quarter to be the company's most successful ever, and Apple's revenue forecasts for Q1 2018 range between $84 billion and $87 billion.
Apple is clearly expecting iPhone X sales to be tremendous. At $999 / £999 / AU$1,579, the iPhone X is expensive, but that price and demand for the iPhone X will almost certainly spell a gigantic first quarter for Apple.
That is, if iPhone X supply can keep up with orders. While reports have suggested the iPhone X could be in short supply at launch, Apple seems confident it will meet customer demand ... and make billions as a result.
Success across the board
Of course, iPhone isn't the only device Apple sells and every one of the categories Apple tracks saw growth this past quarter.
iPad had "very strong revenue growth," Cook said. iPad sales were up 11% year-over-year, with total sales at 10.3 million. Apple introduced the iPad Pro 10.5 and iPad Pro 12.9 (2017) during WWDC 2017 in June, and a new iPad Pro 9.7 went on sale in March.
Mac was also up, notching 10% growth in units sold to 5.4 million. The MacBook Pro line got a refresh earlier this year.
As for Other Products, which encompasses Apple Watch, AirPods and Apple TV, Apple's revenue was up 36% from the same time last year. Apple never breaks out individual device sales in this category, but the quarter did see the Apple Watch 3 and Apple TV 4K go on sale.
Finally, Apple's Services business reached an all-time revenue high of $8.5 million, up 34% from last year. Services include Apple Music and the App Store, and represents a huge area of growth for Apple.
While this was another successful quarter for Apple to notch on its belt, the iPhone X launch will almost certainly push Apple revenue to atmospheric heights. Barring a botched launch, there doesn't seem to be anything standing in Apple's way.
