Apple's new iPhone 6 and 6 Plus handsets are dominating the Japanese market in their first week of sales, reports Forbes, which cited weekly sales rankings provided by Japan's BCN. iPhone sales were boosted by carrier Softbank, which edged out KDDI and NTT DoCoMo as the top wireless provider and accounted for 42.9 percent of weekly iPhone sales. According to the tracking, individual iPhone models took the top 18 spots in sales for the week.

APPLE-BCN-3-CARRIERS-AND-6-VS-6-PLUS
The iPhone 6 was the most popular iPhone version, displacing competitors and the company's own the iPhone 5s and 5c handsets, which previously topped the list for the month of August. According to BCN, the relative split between iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus models was roughly 82 percent to 18 percent, with the smaller iPhone 6 seeing much greater sales than the larger model.

BCN tracks smartphones on a weekly and monthly basis, and in its latest weekly rankings the iPhone 6 took 8 of the top 10 spots with the iPhone 5s taking 5th and 8th place. The iPhone 6 Plus’ highest ranking was 11th and it has a fairly strong showing taking 5 of the next 7 spots.

Apple’s success compares to the month of August where the iPhone 5s took the 3rd and 4th positions and the 5c captured the 6th, 7th and 10th positions.

A similar dominance of the iPhone 6 was observed in US metrics with the iPhone 6 far outpacing the bigger iPhone 6 Plus. Much of this disparity may be the result of supply constraints affecting the availability of iPhone 6 Plus handsets, making it much harder for customers to find the models in retail stores and online.

Apple began selling the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus on September 19 and sold a record-breaking ten million handsets in the first weekend of sales. Demand for the handset remains high with minimum ship times of seven to ten days for most iPhone 6 models and three to four weeks for iPhone 6 Plus versions.

Tag: Forbes
Related Forum: iPhone

Top Rated Comments

fmcarv Avatar
148 months ago
bend that Samsung....
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
b0fh Avatar
148 months ago
The 6 plus it's just too darn big. What was Apple thinking? For comparison even the 6 is basically the same size as the 5.2inch LG g2. If it wasn't for the ecosystem and superior apps, Apple would have hard time competing.

When Apple did not have big phones:
No big phones? What is wrong with Apple?!?!

When Apple does have big phones:
If it wasn't for the ecosystem and superior apps, Apple would have hard time competing.

I guess there's no pleasing everyone.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
a0me Avatar
148 months ago
i doubt that, asians were the first to walk around with surfboards in their hands over here
I think you are confusing Korea with Japan. Samsung's market share in Japan is ridiculously small.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
bushido Avatar
148 months ago
No, sorry. If I learned anything from MR it's that the Japanese will never buy a phone with a large screen because of their "tiny hands."

i doubt that, asians were the first to walk around with surfboards in their hands over here
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
a0me Avatar
148 months ago
I bought the 6 plus after anticipating it for months, begging for it to be real and not just a rumor, than after 3 days I returned it for the regular 6. The 6 plus it's just too darn big. What was Apple thinking? For comparison even the 6 is basically the same size as the 5.2inch LG g2. If it wasn't for the ecosystem and superior apps, Apple would have hard time competing.
You wanted an over-sized phone and you returned it because it's over-sized? I don't understand the logic.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
applepuree Avatar
148 months ago
I bought the 6 plus after anticipating it for months, begging for it to be real and not just a rumor, than after 3 days I returned it for the regular 6. The 6 plus it's just too darn big.

Thats a matter of opinion and personal taste.

I have the 6 Plus and I love it. For me, its better option than a smaller phone and an iPad. I love the landscape mode and tend to use that most of all.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

Aston Martin CarPlay Ultra Screen

Apple's CarPlay Ultra to Expand to These Vehicle Brands Later This Year

Sunday February 1, 2026 10:08 am PST by
Last year, Apple launched CarPlay Ultra, the long-awaited next-generation version of its CarPlay software system for vehicles. Nearly nine months later, CarPlay Ultra is still limited to Aston Martin's latest luxury vehicles, but that should change fairly soon. In May 2025, Apple said many other vehicle brands planned to offer CarPlay Ultra, including Hyundai, Kia, and Genesis. In his Powe...
Apple Logo Black

Apple Just Made Its Second-Biggest Acquisition Ever After Beats

Thursday January 29, 2026 10:07 am PST by
Apple today confirmed to Reuters that it has acquired Q.ai, an Israeli startup that is working on artificial intelligence technology for audio. Apple paid close to $2 billion for Q.ai, according to sources cited by the Financial Times. That would make this Apple's second-biggest acquisition ever, after it paid $3 billion for the popular headphone and audio brand Beats in 2014. Q.ai has...
Apple Logo Black

Apple's Next Launch is 'Imminent'

Sunday February 1, 2026 12:31 pm PST by
The calendar has turned to February, and a new report indicates that Apple's next product launch is "imminent," in the form of new MacBook Pro models. "All signs point to an imminent launch of next-generation MacBook Pros that retain the current form factor but deliver faster chips," Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said on Sunday. "I'm told the new models — code-named J714 and J716 — are slated...
14 inch MacBook Pro Keyboard

Apple Changes How You Order a Mac

Saturday January 31, 2026 10:51 am PST by
Apple recently updated its online store with a new ordering process for Macs, including the MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, iMac, Mac mini, Mac Studio, and Mac Pro. There used to be a handful of standard configurations available for each Mac, but now you must configure a Mac entirely from scratch on a feature-by-feature basis. In other words, ordering a new Mac now works much like ordering an...
Apple MacBook Pro M4 hero

New MacBook Pros Reportedly Launching Alongside macOS 26.3

Sunday February 1, 2026 5:42 am PST by
Apple is planning to launch new MacBook Pro models with M5 Pro and M5 Max chips alongside macOS 26.3, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. "Apple's faster MacBook Pros are planned for the macOS 26.3 release cycle," wrote Gurman, in his Power On newsletter today. "I'm told the new models — code-named J714 and J716 — are slated for the macOS 26.3 software cycle, which runs from...