I think you have people that are on the S cycle and those that are on the whole number cycle.  I have a Iphone 4 regular and did not upgrade so I skipped the S and got a Skyrocket, but will be getting apple's next phone. 

Indeed, in fact, it wouldn't surprise me if the vast majority of iPhone sales were off of 18/24 month contracts, which means a significant number of 4S sales were upgrades from 3GS.

Mummelmann said: Those numbers truly show how overpriced their services and products are... I've never seen such profit margins in my life!

If they were overpriced, they wouldn't be selling twice as many units as last year.

And if you want to see bigger margins, check out some Microsoft financials some time.

+1

They're trying to take over the world!!!

Please Apple, I need 1 million for me to buy the noodles.

Apple phenomenon is probably thing that I will never fully unterstand. Yes they make quality products and it's not surprising to see them sell well but really that well? 36 million people spent almost $700 dollars to own a phone? Not to mention that competition makes great phones also. Damn.

Very impressive... More so in these economic times..

While I often argue that the success of such products (particularly in our current economic environment) is down to the distortion effect on prices thanks to inflation, a major component of the iPhone's (and other smart phones') success is the contract model. If you were to explain to people that they're dropping $600-$700 on a phone, most would certainly reconsider. When that price is hidden away in a monthly bill over the next two years, however, the situation completely changes.

I so wish I owned Apple stock. Those number are jaw-dropping incredible.