Nine of the top ten handsets activated on Christmas Day in the U.S. were iPhones, according to a market-analysis firm. Only a single Android slipped onto the list… and in last place.
But it’s not Apple’s newest that dominated holiday sales. Older, more affordable models were the top sellers.
“Christmas day in the United States is the single greatest day for new smartphone activations,” according to Lisa Moshfegh, an analyst with Flurry Analytics. But COVID-19 caused a 23% year-over-year drop in activations. Some of this could be financial difficulties. But this count only includes devices activated on December 25, and gifting might be more spread out this year.
iPhone took the lion’s share of 2020 Christmas activations
The iPhone 11, which debuted in 2019, was the most activated handset on Christmas Day 2020 by Americans, according to Flurry. The iPhone XR, from 2018, was in second place. “The success of past years’ models — notably the iPhone 11 and iPhone XR — may demonstrate that American consumers were more price sensitive this holiday season,” noted Moshfegh.
Two handsets from 2020 came next. The iPhone 12 Pro Max and iPhone 12 were in third and fourth place. Two more 2020 models made the list as well. The iPhone SE was in sixth place, according to Flurry, while the iPhone 12 Pro was in seventh place.
Photo: Flurry
Of all the recently released Apple handsets, only the iPhone 12 mini didn’t make the top 10. This isn’t the first report to show that this tiny version isn’t selling well.
The LGK30 is the sole Android-based handset on Flurry’s list.
