As noted in our
Daily Deals post, prices on the Apple Watch are now being
routinely discounted by as much as $100 as part of what appears to be a concentrated strategy to make the device one of the hottest gifts this holiday season. On the heels of the discounting, which has made the wearable a popular choice for gifting, comes a new study that says 62 percent of current owners
plan to buy another Apple Watch as a gift for someone else. The trend could push 2015 Apple Watch sales into the range of 16 million units, though firm figures are hard to come by.
Target and other retailers have previously offered up to $100 in gift cards or equivalent values, but retailer B&H is flat-out cutting the price by $50, and Best Buy is now offering up to $100 off the price of selected models with no strings attached. The poll, conducted by Ipsos and Reuters, found that six percent of the 16,000 people surveyed already owned an Apple Watch, and seven percent of the group planned to buy an Apple Watch as a present for others.
The results translate into possible sales of 16 million units by the end of the year, which lines up with recent reports that the Watch was selling around four million units per quarter in earlier quarters, and will likely do as many as eight million units in the holiday quarter as a result of the season, the recent discounts, new color options in the lower-end Sport range, and new accessories reaching the market -- including Apple's own
Apple Watch stand. The survey was conducted between October 21 and December 4 -- but notably excluded teenagers from the survey group, which could end up being a significant gift and buying segment for the Watch.
Another factor that could weigh in on the bottom line as Apple finishes the calendar year and its first 2016 fiscal quarter is that the number of countries with Apple Watch availability has increased significantly in the past few months, alongside a significant print and TV commercial advertising campaign. In addition to another quarter of monster iPhone sales, Apple is also seeing renewed activity
in the iPad sector as the latest models and price points for the devices attract holiday shoppers. Sales of the latest iPad and iPad mini saw a 40 percent increase in sales over Thanksgiving weekend compared to previous weeks.
While analysts have speculated that Apple has likely moved around eight million Apple Watches so far, exact figures are difficult to ascertain, as the company does not break out Apple Watch sales, and combines the revenue from it along with "other products" -- like the Apple TV and iPod -- in an effort to hide its impact (or lack thereof), though the category has grown significantly since Apple started including the Watch in the mix.
It does seem likely that Apple will hit early predictions that it could sell seven million to 12 million units in calendar 2015, and up to 16 million or more in its first full year. Among other factors, there are still many countries where the Apple Watch has not yet arrived, and there are rumors of still more new collaborations, new materials, and of course new bands and accessories to come.
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