• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
TechApple

Look Who’s Buying Apple’s Retro iPhone

By
Philip Elmer-DeWitt
Philip Elmer-DeWitt
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Philip Elmer-DeWitt
Philip Elmer-DeWitt
Down Arrow Button Icon
March 30, 2016, 8:44 AM ET

Sales of Apple’s 4-inch iPhone SE began with a whimper, according to Slice Intelligence, an analytics firm that extracts marketable data from the e-mail receipts of four million compliant online shoppers.

Based on its analysis of first weekend orders, total iPhone SE sales could come in at just 3% of the record 10 million-plus iPhone 6 units sold over three days in 2014. That works out to roughly 300,000 iPhone SEs—a rather modest number by Apple’s (AAPL) standards.

Subscribe to Data Sheet, Fortune’s daily tech newsletter.

Along with sales numbers, Slice captures all sorts of demographic data, which makes for some interesting charts.

For example, Slice found a disproportionate number of iPhone SE buyers are coming from “other” mobile operating systems, mostly Google’s (GOOGL) Android. (Click on the interactive chart below to see the difference between the SE and the 6S.)

Digging even deeper, Slice reports buyers of the SE “look much different than the Apple fanboy audience typically queuing up to buy the latest from Cupertino. They’re older, less educated, and surprisingly, more male.”

A further indication that the SE is “bringing a new audience to iPhone,” Slice suggests, are the differences in education levels represented in this final chart.

“Only 39% of new SE owners have a college degree,” Slice reports, “whereas 46% of those who pre-ordered an iPhone 6 or 6S did. And while education and income typically correlate closely, there were not sizable differences in income between SE buyers and those of other iPhones, though iPhone SE buyers under-index somewhat among the highest wage earners.”

About the Author
By Philip Elmer-DeWitt
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Tech

Tired hispanic man in a professional suit feeling sad while waiting for the appointment of a job interview at a recruitment office
EconomyJobs
The job market is healing for everyone—except in the office
By Eva RoytburgMay 8, 2026
7 minutes ago
Anthropic grew 80-fold in a single quarter. Now it’s renting Elon Musk’s data center to cope
AIAnthropic
Anthropic grew 80-fold in a single quarter. Now it’s renting Elon Musk’s data center to cope
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezMay 8, 2026
20 minutes ago
Anduril CEO Brian Schimpf
NewslettersTerm Sheet
Brian Schimpf has been quietly running Anduril since its earliest days. And once he’s talking, he has a lot to say
By Allie GarfinkleMay 8, 2026
4 hours ago
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission headquarters in Washington, D.C.
AICFO Daily
Is quarterly reporting hurting investors or helping them? The SEC just weighed in—and the debate is far from over
By Sheryl EstradaMay 8, 2026
4 hours ago
Apple AirPods Pro in Cupertino, California, on Sept. 9, 2025. (Photo: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg/Getty Images)
NewslettersFortune Tech
Apple AirPods with cameras are coming
By Andrew NuscaMay 8, 2026
4 hours ago
Match Group CEO Spencer Rascoff
SuccessJobs
Match Group’s CEO revived a shuttered Tinder internship program for Gen Z—and received over 30,000 applications for just 27 spots
By Emma BurleighMay 8, 2026
5 hours ago

Most Popular

California farmers must destroy 420,000 peach trees after Del Monte closes its canneries and cancels more than $550 million in long-term contracts
North America
California farmers must destroy 420,000 peach trees after Del Monte closes its canneries and cancels more than $550 million in long-term contracts
By Sasha RogelbergMay 7, 2026
19 hours ago
U.S. Treasury will have to borrow $2 trillion this year just to continue functioning—more than $166 billion every month
Economy
U.S. Treasury will have to borrow $2 trillion this year just to continue functioning—more than $166 billion every month
By Eleanor PringleMay 7, 2026
1 day ago
'Blue dot fever' plagues musicians like Post Malone, Meghan Trainor, and Zayn as a growing list of artists cancel tours due to lagging ticket sales
Arts & Entertainment
'Blue dot fever' plagues musicians like Post Malone, Meghan Trainor, and Zayn as a growing list of artists cancel tours due to lagging ticket sales
By Dave Lozo and Morning BrewMay 7, 2026
20 hours ago
A Michigan farm town voted down plans for a giant OpenAI-Oracle data center. Weeks later, construction began
Magazine
A Michigan farm town voted down plans for a giant OpenAI-Oracle data center. Weeks later, construction began
By Sharon GoldmanMay 6, 2026
2 days ago
Current price of oil as of May 7, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of oil as of May 7, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerMay 7, 2026
1 day ago
Tokyo is throwing out its strict office dress code and asking workers to wear shorts amid the war in Iran energy crisis
Success
Tokyo is throwing out its strict office dress code and asking workers to wear shorts amid the war in Iran energy crisis
By Emma BurleighMay 5, 2026
3 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.