13.5m iPhone sales by '09?

RBC Capital is raising its estimates to reflect a predicted 13.5 million iPhone sales by the end of 2008. Checks suggest Apple may be planning to produce 8 million iPhones by the end of this year alone, which would put the company well ahead of its own announced hopes of selling 10 million phones within an 18-month period. Apple's plans for 2007 may include higher memory (16GB) iPhones, as well as refreshes to existing models at lower prices to stimulate demand, according to SeekingAlpha. Plans also could include inventory for iPhone launches in Canada, Europe, and Asia with a 3G/HSDPA-capable handset shipping by the spring of 2008 alongside a higher resolution display. Checks also point to a potential refresh in Apple's iPod line in the fourth quarter of this year which may well include an updated iPod nano, a new iPod model altogether, and a new video iPod. Some or all of the updated iPods could include iPhone-like features as well, according to the firm, with new devices adding more memory as well as integrated Wi-Fi capability moving forward.

by MacNN Staff