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Tag: apple

  • Apple’s ‘best year ever”

    Apple’s ‘best year ever”

    Tech giant Apple has reported its fourth quarter results – and concluded its “best year ever”.

    In the three months to September 26, the company achieved sales of $51.5 billion and a quarterly net profit of $11.1 billion. That compares to sales of $42.1 billion and a net profit of $8.5 billion, in the same quarter last year.

    The company’s gross margin was 39.9 per cent compared to 38 per cent a year ago. International sales accounted for 62 per cent of the quarter’s revenue.

    Apples says its growth was fuelled by record fourth quarter sales of iPhones, the expanded availability of the Apple Watch, and all-time records for Mac sales and revenue from services.

    “Fiscal 2015 was Apple’s most successful year ever, with revenue growing 28 per cent to nearly $234 billion,” said CEO Tim Cook.

    “This continued success is the result of our commitment to making the best, most innovative products on earth, and it’s a testament to the tremendous execution by our teams,” he said.

    “We are heading into the holidays with our strongest product lineup yet, including iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus, Apple Watch with an expanded lineup of cases and bands, the new iPad Pro and the all-new Apple TV which begins shipping this week.”

    Luca Maestri, Apple’s CFO, said the company’s record September quarter results drove earnings per share growth of 38 per cent and operating cash flow of $13.5 billion.

    “We returned $17 billion to our investors during the quarter through share repurchases and dividends, and we have now completed over $143 billion of our $200 billion capital return program.”

    In the quarter ahead, Apple is predicting revenue of between $75.5 billion and $77.5 billion and a gross margin which could reach 40 per cent.

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  • Why Apple Is Rumored To Launch First Store In Singapore

    Why Apple Is Rumored To Launch First Store In Singapore

    Recent online speculation suggests that Apple Inc. is all set to open its first-ever retail outlet in Singapore by 2016, leading to the shutdown of the Pure Fitness Knightsbridge branch by end of this year. The tech giant currently operates in Singapore through its online store and third-party retailers.

    The company’s next store is the reason why Pure Fitness has to evacuate from its location on Orchard Road. The fitness chain notified its customers and tenants about its decision in an email to “make way” for Apple’s new store opening. The Pure Fitness Knightsbridge is scheduled to shut on December 15, 2015.

    Apple has still not confirmed Pure Fitness’ statement; however, there is a great chance that the tech giant may be considering investing in its outlet on Orchard road, the shopping hub of Singapore, to further expand its customer-base and make use of its ideal store location.

    Since the tech giant’s products and services are accessible in Singapore through its online store and third-party outlets, Apple has already secure a position in competitive markets even before its first store opening. The company’s apparent decision to launch an Apple Store in the specific location will also help trigger increased activity for surrounding brands and businesses through its dedicated client-base.

    While Apple remains vague about its plans for Singapore, it has been busy launching new Apple Stores in various countries, with the latest opening in Dalian, China. The company is also set to launch its largest Apple Store in Dubai before the end of October, marking it as one of the many Apple outlets that the company launched solely this month. With Apple’s vast campaign to expand its platform to numerous countries in 2015, it will not come as a surprise if the tech giant launches a retail outlet for its Singaporean client-base to further promote its variants.

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  • Apple’s Tim Cook hearts China

    Apple’s Tim Cook hearts China

    Tim Cook, soft-spoken Southerner that he is, often can be a man of few words. During a conference call with analysts Tuesday afternoon to announce Apple’s strong fourth-quarter results, he dismissed a question from a Goldman Sachs analyst with a terse “I don’t know the answer to that,” followed by silence.

    Asked about China, however, the Apple CEO turned positively rhapsodic. In fact he soliloquized a stem-winder so passionate, its content speaks volumes to the country’s place in Apple’s future.

    “We’ve been able to grow without the market growing,” Cook said, after the company announced that sales in what it calls “Greater China” (including Hong Kong and Taiwan) doubled to $12.5 billion in the quarter. “iPhone 6 was the largest-selling phone in mainland China,” he said.

    Then, Cook countered the oodles of commentary calling into question China’s economic growth. “Frankly, if I were to shut off my Web and shut off the TV and just look at how many customers are coming into our stores and coming online, I wouldn’t know there was any economic issue at all in China. I think there’s a misunderstanding, particularly in the Western world, which contributes to the confusion.”

    In fact, Apple recently opened its 25th retail store in China, on the way to 40 soon. Cook said that no matter the near-term gyrations, Apple is in China for good. “We’re investing in China for the decades ahead,” he said. “China will be Apple’s top market in the world. That’s not just for sales. The developer community is growing faster than any country in the world.” Cook was there last week and said he was impressed with the software developers he met. As for the retail customers he encountered? Their enthusiasm was “infectiously contagious.”

    Cook didn’t stop there. “Nobody’s asking me about iPad on the call,” he said, referring to Apple’s tablet computer, whose sales declined 20% from the previous year. “In China, for 68% of the people who bought an iPad, it was the first tablet they had owned, and 40% of those had never owned any Apple product.”

    Apple remains a global juggernaut. It’s easy to see why its CEO, who spent years of his life flying back and forth from California to Apple’s partner factories in China, is bullish on the world’s second biggest economy, short-term issues be damned.

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  • Story-i launches into Vietnam

    Story-i launches into Vietnam

    Apple reseller Story-i has launched in Vietnam hoping to replicate its Indonesian market success.

    The Singapore-headquartered electronic authorised reseller has opened its first Apple Premium Reseller (APR) store in the new SC VivoCity Mall in Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam.

    The opening of the first store in Vietnam marks Story-i’s 17th outlet. The company owns and operates 16 stores throughout Indonesia, selling Apple, Samsung and Lenovo products.

    Story-i chose Vietnam as its next new market because of its “similar demographic and lifestyle consumer trajectory to Indonesia”.

    Management has identified Vietnam with 92 million population as the next high growth market and aims to open eight more outlets during the next three years.

    Said executive director Michael Chan: “This new store in Vietnam marks the beginning of our growth strategy to penetrate the expanding middle class of Southeast Asia’s population of 600 million. As we have done in Indonesia, we will anchor growth from prominent store locations and drive market penetration with our eCommerce offering.”

    He said the team was focused on rolling out a unique mix of electronic lifestyle products such as Apple and Lenovo as well as its enterprise solution and education services into Vietnam.

    “Our first Vietnam store continues to exceed our expectations for visitation and sales. This bodes well for extending the network through the smaller cities up to the northern capital, Hanoi.”

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  • How big is Apple’s green initiative in China?

    How big is Apple’s green initiative in China?

    It’s not easy to convey the scale of the two initiatives Apple announced today to reduce its carbon footprint in China—Building 200 megawatts of solar projects in the provinces on its own and partnering with its Asian suppliers to install another 2 gigawatts of new clean energy.

    Apple’s press release offered some helpful analogies.

    —The 40 megawatts of solar projects already completed in the Sichuan Province produce more than the total amount of electricity used by all of Apple’s offices and retail stores in China.

    —The 200 megawatts of solar projects planned for the northern, eastern and southern regions of China will produce enough energy to power 265,000 Chinese homes in a year

    —The combined programs will avoid over 20 million metric tons of greenhouse gas pollution in China between now and 2020, the equivalent of taking nearly 4 million passenger vehicles off the road for a year.

    “Climate change is one of the great challenges of our time, and the time for action is now,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “The transition to a new green economy requires innovation, ambition and purpose.”

    It also takes a lot of money. Apple achieved 100% carbon neutrality in its U.S. operations in part by generating its own clean energy and in part by buying credits from other clean energy providers. Now it’s doing the same in China.

    Not every company can afford that. Still, Apple is getting plaudits for leading by example.

    “We need governments and companies to transition us to renewable energy as rapidly as possible,” said Gary Cook of Greenpeace, an organization that played Apple’s scold not that many years ago. “Apple’s announcement today is a major step forward in building a renewably powered supply chain for its products.”

  • iPhone 6s hits store shelves in South Korea

    iPhone 6s hits store shelves in South Korea

    By Kim Seung-yeon

    SEOUL, Oct. 23 (Yonhap) — Apple Inc.’s two latest smartphones went on sale in South Korea on Friday, with the industry poised to keep close tabs on the market for possible overheating on the retail front.

    The country’s three major mobile carriers — SK Telecom Co., KT Corp. and LG Uplus Inc. — released the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus for sale via their respective retail stores nationwide.

    The iPhone 6s is available for 720,000 won (US$635) for the 16GB model and 1.14 million won for the 128GB, given the subsidy of about 130,000 won, according to the telecom companies.

    The price of the iPhone 6s Plus starts from 999,000 won and runs to 1.26 million won depending on the phone’s storage capacity.

    The mobile carriers each held a launching event for the new iPhone series earlier in the day, offering various promotions and free gifts to woo consumers.

    The release of a new iPhone series usually draws heated interest here among consumers, including Apple loyalists, and the entire industry.

    Huge demand for the new iPhones has been a trigger for the mobile carriers to risk giving large sums of rebates that passed the legal limit in order to steal customers away from rivals.

    In October last year, the government came up with a new handset subsidy law to curb the excessive paybacks. Yet it proved to be less than effective when the iPhone 6 series went on sales later in that month and retail vendors began to splurge subsidies.

    Industry watchers are paying close attention again this time as to how the market will response to the two upgraded iPhones, although many bet that there won’t be as much of a fuss as the previous releases due to tougher market conditions.

    The online presales of the iPhone 6s series, which ran through this week, ended in early closures as they sold out in the first few minutes of the start.

    Of the early purchases, 30.4 percent booked the new rose gold model, while preorders for the silver iPhone 6s Plus came in at mere 0.1 percent, according to one of the mobile carriers.

    Customers form a long queue to buy the new iPhone S6 series on the first day of its release in front of a direct retail store run by South Korean mobile carrier LG Uplus Inc. in Seoul, on Oct. 23, 2015. (Yonhap)

    Customers form a long queue to buy the new iPhone S6 series on the first day of its release in front of a direct retail store run by South Korean mobile carrier LG Uplus Inc. in Seoul, on Oct. 23, 2015.

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  • Apple’s location for its official Singapore store confirmed?

    Apple’s location for its official Singapore store confirmed?

    Apple’s location for its first official store in Singapore might be confirmed in a press release… that was not released by Apple.

    The announcement started innocently enough: fitness chain Pure Fitness issued a statement saying it will be closing its branch in Knightsbridge, a distinctive retail building in Singapore. Oddly, it mentions in passing that “Pure and other tenants will be handing back space to make way for the opening of a new Apple store in late 2016.”

    We can only guess why Pure Fitness talked about Apple in the press release.knightsbridge

    Earlier, an email was apparently sent out to Pure Fitness customers stating the same news:

    apple pure fitness

    Apple has been seeking a retail space in Singapore for some time. We are reaching out to the company for comment.

     

  • Apple Inc. To Open The Largest Store In China Tomorrow

    Apple Inc. To Open The Largest Store In China Tomorrow

    Apple Inc. confirmed the upcoming launch of its 21st Apple Store in China, scheduled to open in Dalian on October 24, 2015. The latest retail outlet is situated in Parkland Shopping Mall on 19 Jiefang Road. Earlier in 2012, the iPhone maker claimed that the store in Dalian may potentially be the Apple’s “largest” retail outlet ever.

    The company’s new outlet is located in Dalian’s Zhongshan District, a populated area usually flooded with tourists from Japan, Korea and China. And it also serves as a popular port and financial center. Apple confirmed that the store was set to open its doors on Saturday at 9:30 AM.

    As Apple pursues its aim to open the “largest flagship store” in Parkland Mall, the company may also decide to transfer that title to its other upcoming retail outlet for Dubai, scheduled to open on October 29. The tech giant’s store in the Mall of Emirates also marks it as its first expansion plan in the Middle East.

    Apple is aware of its strong influence in Chine, and has been working on the Dalian project for past three years. Through this, it is clear that the tech giant takes China as one of its main consumer markets for Apple products. Even though Apple might not make its Dalian outlet the “largest” one, its former plans do so indicate that it may have other exclusive plans for its store in China.

    The company has also invited US locals to apply for potential jobs at the upcoming store, with recruitment beginning earlier this year. By introducing a new store in China, Apple may help create increasing job opportunities for local citizens as well. By providing customers with basic Apple Store services such as a Genius Bar, workshops, tutorials and more at the upcoming Apple Store, it is evident Apple is attempting to integrate its standard store elements into the upcoming branch to ensure it can authentically deliver according to its original standards and help boost its reputation even further in Chinese markets.

    By launching an Apple outlet in one of the most visited locations in Dalian, Apple’s plan may help it increase its user base even further. The company’s efforts to attract a larger target market is expected to be successful due to its easy access to numerous strangers and tourists who visit Parkland for shopping. The tech giant will be able to benefit from its store location and may attract foreigners to its variants, further promoting its services to a larger audience through its China retail outlet.

    Moreover, it is highly possible that Apple’s new store will help boost business for surrounding retailers as well, enabling the company to secure a relationship with Dalian businesses for future ventures. As far as its store in Dubai is concerned, the iPhone maker is deliberately choosing shopping plazas and malls to introduce its outlets, so that it can target wider audiences.

    It isn’t confirmed that the tech giant still plans to make its Dalian branch the “largest” outlet. However, the store’s launch this Saturday is expected to attract many customers from China, Korea and Japan.

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  • Apple Stores set to enter India; teams up with Croma Retail

    Apple Stores set to enter India; teams up with Croma Retail

    Apple Stores will now officially enter Indian shores in partnership with Tata-owned consumer electronics chain Croma which will host Apple at six locations – five in Croma stores, Mumbai and one in Bangalore – to begin with. The locations are Juhu, Oberoi Mall, Malad, Ghatkopar, and Phoenix Mall in Mumbai. In Bangalore, it will be opened in Jayanagar. These stores will be opened by Diwali this year.

    Avijit Mitra, chief executive officer of Infiniti Retail, which owns Croma said, “We are proud to partner Apple to launch the Apple Store in India and extremely bullish about it. These stores will be modelled on the global design and will offer the best experience to consumers, showcasing the entire range of Apple products.”

    It should be pointed out that these stores will be different from Apple exclusive stores in India. Apple will not own these stores, but has franchisees who are premium re-sellers. Apple products are sold online via e-commerce portals as well.

    The Apple space will be 400-500 square feet in area and the store design, furniture, fixtures and lighting will the same as that used in Apple stores globally and the sales staff will also be trained by the company, the report added.

    Croma has stated that it has 97 stores across the country with 3.8 million customers where as Apple owns more than 460 stores in 17 countries. The company has significantly increased its retail presence in the country in the past year with five distributors in India.

  • Apple iPhone 6s Sales in China Below Expectations, Says Boutique Researcher J.L. Warren

    Apple iPhone 6s Sales in China Below Expectations, Says Boutique Researcher J.L. Warren

    Junheng Li with boutique research shop J.L. Warren Capital this morning opines that Apple‘s (AAPL) rollout of its iPhone 6s is failing to meet expectations, citing as the main reason a failure of the Chinese market to deliver.
    “According to information and/or data readily available from AAPL suppliers, we consider that the iPhone 6s initial launch in the 12 markets globally, is not meeting market expectations,” writes Li.

    Oddly enough, although Apple announced on September 28th that its first-weekend sales of the 6s beat last year’s 10 million for the iPhone 6, selling more than 13 million units, Li argues the result was underwhelming.

    “During the first week (including weekend) or 3 days post launch, we estimate ~13million units were sold. This number is lower than original expectations, largely due to an overestimated demand from mainland China.”

    Li cites some China market data from something called Gray Market Marker, which apparently collects the price of iPhones trading on the black market:

    AAPL launched the iPhone 6s simultaneously in Hong Kong and mainland China which cannibalized sales in HK. According to the largest grey market make [sic] a consumer electronics trading platform, the current spot prices for many models even on the launch data (9/30/2015) were below the official retail prices, unprecedented in the iPhone launch history. In total, we estimate that ~2.5-3 million of units of the 6s were sold in the mainland and ~1.5 units sold in HK. In comparison with previous years iPhone launches, when the mainland was not included in the initial launch, only 30% of the 6s purchases were from mainland, vs. 50% in previous years.

    (One point not addressed by Li is whether the premium can be expected to be lower, or even absent, precisely because the iPhone 6 was only available on the black market last year, having been left out of rhr first round of retail sales.)

    Li offers one explanation for why she thinks sales to China are below plan: “Since ZTE and Huawei already launched smart phones with 3D force touch, the new screen is not novel to Chinese consumers.”

    Li also offers some other tidbits, such as that the iPhone that comes in rose gold finish was the best seller, making 45% of sales.

    As for the outlook, she opines,

    We believe that China is the biggest moving piece for AAPL’s global sales in 2015, given it is about 20+% of the company’s global market and the demand for the iPhone is growing at ~20% according to our research. We currently project 200 million units of sell-in for iPhone 6/6+ and iPhone 6s/6s+ combined in 2015, which is 10million sell-through units lower than, the current street consensus.

    Apple shares today are down 81 cents, or 0.7%, at $110.50.

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  • Apple launches new iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, available in Singapore on Sept 25

    Apple launches new iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, available in Singapore on Sept 25

    Apple unveiled two new iPhones – iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus – during a special event held at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium.

    As with any iPhone with a “S” moniker, the new iPhones are incremental upgrades to its predecessors.

    The biggest feature being highlighted during the event is the 3D Touch, which is similar to Force Touch found on Apple Watch’s display.

    Users can press lightly on an app icon to bring up options that previously unavailable. For example, users can check in in Facebook without starting the app using 3D Touch.

    Both iPhones feature the new A9 processor and an improved 12-megapixel rear camera (up from 8-megapixel previously) that is able to shoot 4K (3,840 x 2,160 pixels) videos and Live Photos.

    Live Photos will display moving images of moments before and after the picture was taken.

    The front-facing camera gets an upgrade too with a better 5-megapixel camera that comes with Retina Flash (flash from display) for selfie lovers.

    In addition, it is now able to shoot panoramic pictures as well as slow-motion videos.

    Appearance wise, the new iPhones look exactly like its predecessors. The iPhone 6s still sports a 4.7-inch with a screen resolution of 1,334 × 750 pixels while the iPhone 6 Plus’ 5.5-inch display has a screen resolution of 1,920 x 1,080 pixels.

    However, both iPhones are slightly 0.2mm thicker than its predecessors with with the iPhone 6s measuring at 7.1mm and iPhone 6s Plus at 7.3mm. But they are now built with less-bendable 7000 Series aluminium shell to prevent the “Endgate” fiasco last year from happening again.

    Both iPhones now come in a new rose-gold colour to add to the existing gold, silver and space grey options. There is still no 32GB version for its new phones and the new iPhones will come in 16GB, 64GB and 128GB versions.

    The iPhone 6s will retail in Singapore starting from $1,048 (16GB) and the iPhone 6s Plus will start at $1,218 (16GB).

    Pre-ordering starts Sept 12.

    The new iPhones will hit Singapore’s shores on Sept 25.

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  • 3 Hong Kong to sell iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus for HKD 0

    3 Hong Kong to sell iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus for HKD 0

    3 Hong Kong will launch Apple’s iPhone 6sand iPhone 6s Plus smartphones on the local market. Stating 25 September, 3 Hong Kong will offer the iPhone 6s 16GB and the iPhone 6s Plus 16GB for HKD 0 with a refundable deposit on the iPhone monthly plan.

    Customers will be able to acquire the iPhone 6s 16GB for HKD 0 for HKD 408 or above iPhone monthly plans. The iPhone 6s Plus 16GB will also be available for HKD 0 for HKD 498 or above iPhone monthly plans. The iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus and iPhone 5s will also be available.

    Customers who acquire the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus from 3 Hong Kong will be able to connect to the operator’s LTE network with VoLTE HD voice functionality. Users will also have internet access at 3 Hong Kong’s over 16,000 Wi-Fi hotspots.

    Customers can buy the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus at 3 Hong Kong’s retail shops and online at the iphone.three website.

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  • The Apple-IBM MobileFirst Program Set to Launch in China

    The Apple-IBM MobileFirst Program Set to Launch in China

    In July 2014 the Apple and IBM global partnership was formed to transform enterprise mobility via the iPhone and iPad. The alliance formed MobileFirst. By mid-November the MobileFirst website was launched and began promoting the new apps that were being custom designed for key segments of business including Banking/Finance, Travel/Transportation, Retail, Telco, Insurance and Government. It has since expanded to Healthcare, Industrial Products, Law Enforcement, Energy/Utilities and Social Programs.

    It’s being reported today by Guanzhou’s 21st Century Business Herald that the Apple-IBM MobileFirst Enterprise program will be officially coming to China in the coming weeks. The program will reportedly begin with 10 apps aimed at the retail, insurance, financial, telecom and aviation sectors, as well as the government, and events will be held in Beijing and Shanghai to showcase the new products.

    The goal of the Apple-IBM MobileFirst was to have 100 apps finished by the end of this year. Thus far 32 of them are completed with more on the way. Guo Jijun, president for strategy at IBM Greater China, who is also in charge of MobileFirst in the country, noted that “IBM has also formed partnerships with companies, including Twitter, Tencent, SAP, Facebook and China Telecom, so the MobileFirst platform can integrate the strength of these businesses.

    Apple introduced the new iPad Pro on September 9 that now adds the ability to work with a new Smart Keyboard and a digital smartpen called the Apple Pencil to support  professional markets.

    2AF 55 APPLE IPAD PRO, APPLE PENCIL, SMART KEYBOARD

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  • China’s fake Apple Stores alive and well, look to profit on iPhone 6s launch

    China’s fake Apple Stores alive and well, look to profit on iPhone 6s launch

     Thanks to lax copyright enforcement policies, growing demand for all things Apple and a lack of official retail channels, China’s fake Apple Stores are experiencing a resurgence on the back of iPhone 6s preorders.

    In electronics manufacturing mecca Shenzhen, a major cog in Foxconn’s iPhone and iPad production machine, a multitude of counterfeit Apple stores are popping up to take advantage of Friday’s iPhone 6s release, reports Reuters. According to publication estimates, more than 30 storefronts bear Apple’s iconic logo, with some unauthorized outlets kitting out personnel with Apple Store-style blue t-shirts and lanyard name tags.

    As they have in the past, these counterfeit stores are taking advantage of China’s seemingly insatiable iPhone demand. Just hours after iPhone 6s preorders went live last week, Apple’s allotment for the Chinese market sold out, pushing buyers loathe to wait an extra two to three weeks toward unauthorized stores that buy stock from official resellers and flip them for a hefty profit.

    With iPhone viewed as a status symbol in China, many consumers are willing to pay more than double retail prices to get their hands on one the day it comes out. For some buyers the high costs are apparently worth the added cachet that comes with nabbing a copy on day one. Consumers in other markets are also keen to get their hands on Apple’s latest smartphone, but Chinese customers are especially zealous.

    The benefits are more concrete for resellers, who risk minimal retail overhead and an upfront investment by smuggling iPhones in from Hong Kong, the U.S. and other far-flung markets. If successful, however, they stand to haul in huge returns.

    Apple has for years dealt with counterfeit stores, an issue that gained media attention in 2011. While Chinese officials ultimately ordered a handful of operators to shut down, the unauthorized resale industry was never completely wiped out. Now with iPhone 6s, resellers are back in business.

    Part of the problem stems from an inadequate official retail presence in the region. Apple only had 22 stores serving all of China as of June. By comparison, there are 53 Apple Stores in California alone. The disparity is stands in contrast to China’s market potential, which is widely viewed as vital to Apple’s growth and sales sustainability. The company has plans to expand its retail footprint to 40 stores by 2016, however, the most recent being a second Hangzhou location in April.

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  • Apple IPhone 6s, IPhone 6s Plus To Be Available At Retail Stores From Friday

    Apple IPhone 6s, IPhone 6s Plus To Be Available At Retail Stores From Friday

    Apple Inc. said Monday that its latest smartphones, the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus, will be available at the technology giant’s retail stores at 8 a.m. local time on Friday, September 25.

    The company also noted that more than 50 percent of existing devices have upgraded to iOS 9, its newest mobile operating software that was rolled out last week, marking the fastest iOS adoption ever.

    Apple said its retail stores will have the new iPhones available for walk-in customers, who should arrive at a store early. Both models will also be available on Friday from AT&T Inc. ( T ), Sprint Corp. ( S ), T-Mobile US Inc. ( TMUS ), Verizon Wireless, additional carriers and select Apple authorized resellers.

    Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing said, “Customer response to the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus has been incredibly positive, we can’t wait to get our most advanced iPhones ever into customers’ hands starting this Friday. iOS 9 is also off to an amazing start, on pace to be downloaded by more users than any other software release in Apple’s history.”

    In early September, Apple unveiled its iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus smartphones with a faster processor, new 3D Touch capabilities and an improved camera, seeking to woo customers ahead of the holiday season and to assuage investors that its flagship device still has the mojo to sustain growth.

    The phones, which look like their predecessors, are powered by A9 chip, have a new feature called 3D Touch that lets users make commands as well as avail shortcuts and menus by pressing down on the screen.

    Last Monday, Apple said it is on track to beat last year’s record for first weekend sales of iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, when sales breached the 10 million mark within just three days of its sales launch on September 19, 2014.

    The iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus will be available in gold, silver, space gray and the new rose gold metallic finishes for $0 down, with 24 monthly installment payments that start at $27 and $31 respectively, from Apple’s retail stores in the U.S., Apple.com, select carriers and Apple authorized resellers.

    Both the smartphone models will also be available from Friday in Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, New Zealand, Puerto Rico, Singapore, the UK and the U.S. The iPhone will be available by reservation only in China, Hong Kong, Japan and U.S. stores in tax-free states.

    Starting this Saturday, September 26, customers will be able to visit Apple.com to reserve their iPhone for pick-up at their local Apple Store, based on availability. Apple noted that most Apple stores will also have iPhone available for walk-in customers each day.

    Every customer who buys an iPhone 6s or iPhone 6s Plus at an Apple retail store will be offered free Personal Setup to help them customize their iPhone by setting up email and show them new apps from the App Store.

    Apple-designed accessories, such as leather and silicone cases in different colors and Lightning Docks in color-matched metallic finishes, will also be available.

    While unveiling the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus earlier in September, Apple had said that the devices will come with iOS 9, which would be available as a free software update.

    iOS 9 brings more features to iPhone with a Proactive assistant that is similar to Android’s Google Now service, powerful search and improved Siri features, along with an improved security feature.

    Built-in apps on iOS 9 feature redesigned Notes app, detailed transit information in Maps, and a new News app that displays news from several sources.

    AAPL is trading at $114.33, up $0.88 or 0.78 on a volume of 4.44 million shares.

     

     

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