Steve Jobs, on stage at the iPad 2 event today, announced that, among other things, Apple had sold 100 million iPhones. That’s a hell of a lot. They also announced an official figure of 15 million iPads sold, which is about what estimates have been, and as Steve noted, “That’s more than every tablet PC ever sold.”
The iPad alone brought in $9.5 billion in revenue in 2010. Steve also has some disparaging words for Samsung’s Galaxy Tab and other competitors, which have barely begun to sell.
Exact numbers of Android devices sold, which would be the most serious competitor to the iPhone’s 100m mark, aren’t easy to come by. Estimates vary, and while current subscriber numbers indicate that Android is ahead of iPhone, it doesn’t seem that they have cracked the 100m barrier yet — though they likely will very soon. With over 10 million of Samsung’s Galaxy S series alone sold, as well as 300,000 handsets being activated per day (partially due to developing countries eating it up), the sales are nothing to sneeze at.
On the iPad sales numbers, they are impressive to say the least, especially considering the iPad was (despite the enormous hype built up around it) a bit of a risk for Apple. It could have easily turned into another “hobby” a la Apple TV. Analysts expect tablet volume far above 15m in 2011, though, and devices like the Xoom and new Galaxy Tabs should help with that. But to be honest, I think the iPad may still come out on top.