Apple reports 30% increase in user base, but analysts probe for more detail

Sales of Apple's "wearable" accessories were up 70 percent year-over-year in the fiscal first quarter ended Dec. 30 but services revenue fell short of analysts' expectations

In its quarterly earnings report on Thursday, Apple Inc gave the first update in two years on what it calls its active installed base, the number of major products such as iPhones, iPads and Macs in use in the world. Apple said the base expanded 30 per cent from two years ago to 1.3 billion.

That increase should have been seen as positive because Apple aims to become less dependent on selling iPhones and shift to selling its existing customers services like Apple Music or add-on devices like the Apple Watch or AirPods.

But analysts voiced skepticism. Apple’s best-selling product, the iPhone,