21 percent of iPhone 4S buyers picking 64GB, survey claims
updated 03:35 pm EST, Mon January 23, 2012
36 percent upgrading from other platforms
About 21 percent of iPhone 4S buyers are opting for the top-end 64GB model, despite a $399 US pricetag, a Consumer Intelligence Research Partners survey suggests. The group recently surveyed 365 people who bought a 4S during the December quarter, narrowing down candidates from an initial range of 6,316 respondents. The 4S is the first iPhone to have a 64GB option instead of just 8, 16, or 32GB.
The survey also indicates that about 36 percent of buyers are coming from another platform, such Android, Palm, or BlackBerry. The ratio at the 4S launch was considerably smaller, coming in at just 18 percent. It's suggested that AT&T, Verizon, and Sprint have largely retained their iPhone marketshares, but that the device has siphoned customers from carriers without it, such as T-Mobile.
Online sales of the iPhone have dropped as Apple has filled preorders and otherwise satisfied demand, CIRP says. Whereas online represented 43 percent of sales during the 4S launch, that figure slipped to 2011 by the end of 2011.
