iPhone 13 models are selling better than their predecessors, but ‘very small’ demand for the 'mini' continues

Apple's latest iPhone generation has seen the biggest quarterly sales in the United States in several years, the Consumer Intelligence Research Partners (CIRP) reports. However, the iPhone 13 mini saw a similar performance to its predecessor after accounting for only 3 percent of the sales in the same period.

The research firm reported that in the March 2022 quarter, the four-device lineup of iPhone 13 accounted for 71 percent of iPhone sales in the U.S. In comparison, only 61 percent of the overall iPhone sales in the region were from the iPhone 12 series in the same quarter last year.

CIRP also noted that the standard iPhone 13 became the best-selling model out of all Apple smartphones in several years, accounting for 38 percent of the sales in the last quarter. This is a major jump from the iPhone 12’s performance for the same period in 2021, which only accounted for 22 percent of the total iPhone sales.

Last year, there were several reports noting the iPhone 12 mini’s lower-than-expected demand. Apple reportedly halted its production earlier than planned due to low sales, and it appears that the same trend is happening for the iPhone 13 mini. CIRP said both the iPhone 12 mini and iPhone 13 mini only accounted for 3 percent of sales for the same period.

The list of changes in terms of technical specifications and features between the iPhone 12 and iPhone 13 series is not that long. But the latest iPhone generation shipped with some notable upgrades. Apple finally brought its ProMotion technology to its flagship smartphones, giving the iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max display up to 120Hz refresh rate. Apple also added the sensor-shift OIS feature to both Pro models last year, while it was only exclusively available on the iPhone 12 Pro Max in 2020.

However, these upgrades are not the only reasons for the increased sales of the iPhone 13 series. CIRP noted that consumers are keeping their existing phones for a shorter period and are purchasing new phones sooner.

“In the past year the age of the old phone declined steadily, and now only about 20% of buyers had their previous phone for three years or longer,” CIRP co-founder Mike Levin explained. “Since the market shifted to unsubsidized phone sales on installment contracts, the age of old phones climbed as owners enjoyed using their paid-for phones. Recently that trend reversed, perhaps as options for trading-in high value used phones continued to improve.”

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