Apple just set an all-time sales record for Macs - and it's not even Christmas yet
On Tuesday, Apple announced that not only did it beat earnings estimates in the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2015, with $51.5 billion in revenue - it also set a new quarterly record for Mac sales, with 5.71 million sold.
That's a good prelude to the first quarter of Apple's fiscal year 2016, which will include the holiday shopping season. It's also 3.5% higher than last quarter, and a little higher than last year's 5.5 million Macs sold.
The chart, which doesn't include data from today's Apple earnings statement, tells the tale:
Note that in the Q3 '15, the most recent quarter listed on the chart, Mac sales experienced a slowdown - its first in two years. Apparently, Apple saw a recovery from that trend.
Still, for perspective, 62% of Apple's revenue this past quarter came from the iPhone, versus 56% last year.
And while Apple has a history of generally bucking the trend and seeing growing Mac market share while sales of Windows PCs shrink, the Cupertino company must be acutely aware of the overall shrinking size of the personal computer market.
It's probably a big part of why Apple introduced the iPad Pro, a tablet that works like a laptop. As with Microsoft and Google, Apple is attempting to stay ahead of the curve, as people turn to touch-screen devices and mobile for their computing needs.