A man holds an iPhone 6s Plus as the Apple iPhone 6s and 6s Plus go on sale at an Apple Store in Los Angeles, California September 25, 2015. REUTERS/JONATHAN ALCORN
A man holds an iPhone 6s Plus as the Apple iPhone 6s and 6s Plus go on sale at an Apple Store in Los Angeles, California September 25, 2015. Reuters/Jonathan Alcorn

We’ve heard about how huge a success Apple’s iPhone 6s and 6s Plus have been since their launch in September. Now, we’re going to see if the numbers do indeed back-up that claim in the face of a worldwide slowdown in smartphone sales.

The much anticipated answer as to how the new Apple iPhone 6s and 6S Plus fared after pre-orders began Sept. 12 will be revealed today. Apple normally doesn’t give exact figures on iPhone sales but Fortune said some analysts believe sales of the new iPhones might have hit 48.7 million in Apple’s fiscal fourth quarter.

Apple sold a record 74.5 million iPhones in the fourth quarter of 2014, its best ever quarter. Analysts don’t expect sales of the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus to break this record as smartphone sales have cooled, especially in China, Apple’s largest market. Smartphones account for over two-thirds of Apple’s total sales every year.

Apple fans that already use the new phones know it’s tougher; has a better camera and has an easy to repair configuration, reports Computerworld. These are all pluses for Apple.

Apple wrapped up its fiscal fourth quarter on Sept. 26, two weeks after preorders for the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6S Plus started on Sept. 12. This indicates the company won’t be able to furnish results of a full quarter this Tuesday (Oct. 27).

The figures set for release today, however, might give an indication as to how iPhone sales will do in the vital fourth quarter, normally its strongest. Some analysts are concerned Apple won't sell as many smartphones as it did in 2014, and that could be accurate given today’s much softer market.

Analysts will be looking for clues that suggest how well the iPhones will sell during the upcoming holiday shopping quarter, reports CNet.

Though the frenzy surrounding iPhones is always there, speculation is rampant that Apple won’t be able to sell as many smartphones as it did last year. China, the key market for iPhones, was volatile in recent months since replacement sales have overtaken first-time sales. For the moment, it’s unclear if Apple will suffer like one-time high fliers HTC and Samsung that struggled to gain market share in a saturated market.

The iPhone 6s and 6s Plus launch were a huge success but Apple will soon face tight competition likely to pull down smartphone sales, said John Feland, CEO of Arhus Insights.

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