Apple Computer sold more iPods in the latest quarter than Macintosh computers to confirm the success of the portable digital -music player.
The continuing success of the iPod helped Apple to top revenue and earnings expectations in the latest quarter, contributing to a 29 per cent jump in the company's revenues compared with a year before.
Apple, which also acknowledged that iPod shortages were likely for several months, said it shipped 807,000 iPods during the three months to March 27th, helped in part by the launch of the lower priced iPod Mini in the United States. During the same period Apple sold 749,000 Macintosh units.
Year-on-year Macintosh sales grew by 5 per cent, and iPod sales increased by 909 per cent, consolidating the iPod's position as the best selling digital music player in the world.
Most analysts had expected sales of the iPod to reach around 700,000 units. The company could have sold more units during the period but for a shortage of capacity: the international launch of the Mini, scheduled for earlier this year, had to be postponed until July so that Apple could meet unexpected strong demand in the United States.
But the iPod still has only a relatively small impact on the company's overall fortunes, and Apple acknowledged that iPod margins were declining.
Revenues of $264 million in the latest quarter represented about 14 per cent of the total sales of $1.9 billion. The iPod contributed about 40 per cent of the revenue growth that Apple reported for the period, compared with a year before.
Financial Times Services