The most popular product of all time

Asymco ^ | July 29, 2016 | Horace Dediu

[Swordmaker]

The following is a list of the best-selling products across several categories:

Car model: VW Beetle 21.5 million
Car brand: Toyota Corolla 43 million
Music Album: Thriller 70 million
Vehicle: Honda Super Cub 87 million
Book Title: Lord of the Rings 150 million
Toy: Rubik’s Cube 350 million
Game console: Playstation 382 million
Book series: Harry Potter Series 450 million
Mobile Phone: iPhone 1 billion

The iPhone is not only the best selling mobile phone but also the best selling music player, the best selling camera, the best selling video screen and the best selling computer of all time.

It is, quite simply, the best selling product of all time.

It is that because it is so much more than a product. It is an enabler for change. It unleashed forces which we are barely able to perceive, let alone control. It changed the world because it changed us.

And it did all that in less than nine years. One has to wonder what it will enable in the next nine.

[HonkyTonkMan]

Not sure you mentioned it, but is there about 750 ppl on the ping list?

I mean surely somebody has contacted the Guinness people to record this worthy accomplishment. And the oldest ping list! That's really noteworthy.

[Swordmaker]

The Nokia 1100 and 1110 phones sold over 250 million for each model. Way beyond any two Apple models combined. You have to take the top 4 Apple phone models to finally eclipse what the 1100 OR the 1110 did on their own.

Good point. . .

[PROCON]

Not only is bacon tasty, but it helps to separate our friends from our foes.

[kosciusko51]

Maybe, maybe not.

The NIV version is only produced by one publisher, is published in 60 languages, and has sold more than 450 million in the English translation alone. I wish I had more numbers, but I can’t find them now.

[kosciusko51]

LOL. I remember that one. Thanks!

[ealgeone]

Sliced bread perhaps?

Cokes?

Cigs?

[AFreeBird]

BONUS!

[Swordmaker]

I’ve found vehicles and electronic devices to be consumables.

A consumable is something that is use once and thrown away. . . usually that cannot be resold for later reuse. Vehicles and cellular phones do not meet that definition. Food, potables, toilet paper, printer ink and toner, etc., do. Perhaps SOME makes of cellular phones because of their poor quality do meet that criterion. iPhones certainly do not.

[AFreeBird]

Bacon existed long before all of those.

[Phillyred]

Android as an operating system has sold far more than iphone ios.

[mfish13]

So???

[TexasTransplant]

**** “Nope. Beer.

Consumable. . . “ ****

Delicious
Nutritious
Natural

[Elderberry]

Strike anywhere matches.

Bic lighter.

Flashlight.

Off bug spray.

pocket knife.

[ctdonath2]

Dishonorable mention: Microsoft Kin. (Cell phone)
$500,000,000 spent on development.
500 sold.

[Gator113]

Commodes and TP would be high on my list.

I love my Apple phones and all the other Apple products that I have accumulated, but quite frankly, I do not feel good about Apple’s future.

[dangerdoc]

“IIRC, The term “planned obsolescence” was in regard to the auto industry, which was constantly adding new features to their new models to get people to “upgrade” more often. Apple, and all smartphone companies, seem to follow this pattern.”

Not quite, they are designed to fail after a certain period of time.

The top cell phone designers have their own spin on the idea, Apple included a non user-replaceable battery and Samsung quits releasing software updates.

[Swordmaker]

Isn’t Corolla a car model?

Hmmmmm. That's an interesting question. I'd analyze it this way:

The Corolla is a model, but the VW Beetle always had models within the iconic style.

The Volkswagen was a company that started under the Nazi's making an automobile of that style. . . with various models of that iconic style. The name Beetle was an affectation assigned to it by its aficionados in the United States, not the by the Volkswagen company. As a matter of fact, the Volkswagen company did not even like the sobriquet of "Beetle" at first, although later they embraced it as a name of the model. Later, however, there were many models within the named style of VW Beetle. For one example the VW Super Beetle. Volkswagen assigned model numbers to their automobiles. . . but for years, they were all just Volkswagens. . . or VWs. So, no, I don't think it's quite the same thing.

For Toyota, the brand is Toyota, the model is Corolla, and there are sub-models within it.

In later years, for Volkswagen, now the brand, the iconic Beetle style was dropped in favor of boxy sedan models. The later revived the Beetle as a modern model. Does that help?

For the iPhone, you will NOT find a model designation on any iPhone. Every iPhone only says iPhone on it. No model. Not a single one says, for example, "iPhone 6" or "iPhone 5C". They ALL merely are marked "iPhone". Therefore ALL iPhones are the iPhone, from the first to the last.

[kosciusko51]

Not quite, they are designed to fail after a certain period of time.

No, that was just crappy designs. :-)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planned_obsolescence

[Vince Ferrer]

toilet paper

[Gator113]

It was your ping list info and you personally that sold me on the Apple product.

All this time I thought you likely worked for Apple. Apple should be paying you, as you represent them and at times defend them extremely well.

I do not regret any of my Apple purchases, my only regret is their CEO. Yes, I know he must be doing something right, but I sure don’t like him or his politics.

Cheers.....