Apple has shipped 7 million Watches since April, say analysts

Apple has shipped seven million Apple Watches since its release in April, according to research firm Canalys (via Re/Code). The figure represents sales of around one million Apple Watches per month, which is less than Wall Street expected.

However, the news isn't all bad: Canalys points out that Apple Watch sales since April total more than all other vendors combined over the past five quarters. Analyst Chris Jones predicts that the momentum Apple has created will help Apple Watch sales during the holiday quarter.

Apple has been working hard to market the Watch correctly as it enters the Christmas quarter, releasing a slew of adverts that focus on the time saving functions of the Watch. Distribution of the Watch is also being ramped up, with retailers, such as John Lewis, now selling it. (John Lewis was previously ambivalent to the Watch.)

Apple faces competition from both legacy watchmakers, such as Tag Heuer, and its high-tech counterparts, which include Samsung and Pebble. The CEO of Pebble, Eric Migicovsky, told CNBC that sales have doubled since Apple debuted the Watch.

"People are still deciding whether [the Watch is] something they want to invest in," Jones told Re/Code. At $349 (£299) for the base-line model, the Watch isn't cheap. "Watches are not worn by everyone now. The phone can do a lot of notifications [and] so a lot of people are figuring out whether this is something they need."

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