iPhone 3GS Could Account for 20% of iPhone Sales This Quarter

The iPhone 3GS could account for 20 percent of iPhone sales this quarter, according to Shaw Wu, an analyst with Sterne Agee in San Francisco.

Following the release of the iPhone 4S, Apple made the iPhone 3GS available for free after subsidy. AT&T sold out its stocks of iPhone 3GS shortly after the price change, and President Ralph de la Vega told analysts that they've seen "tremendous demand" for the device.

Jitendra Waral and Anand Srinivasan, analysts for Bloomberg Industries say that Apple is getting about $381 per iPhone 3GS in subsidy payments. Apple's profit margin is thought to be as high on the 3GS as the pricier 4S. According to their research, both phones carry a margin of 56.1 percent, while the $99 iPhone 4 has a margin of 55 percent. "The older the iPhone, the better the margin," Srinivasan said.


With the holidays around the corner, Apple's plan to have an iPhone for every budget will likely serve it well.

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