Despite the fact that Apple is widely anticipated to reveal the new iPhone 14 lineup at its upcoming event on the following Wednesday, there is still a significant amount of uncertainty regarding the price that the tech giant will set for its most recent and greatest smartphones given the current economic climate.
Apple is known for having some really devoted consumers. However, considering that broad economic projections are being revised downward left and right, it may be difficult to persuade consumers to replace their iPhones at this time.
Ben Wood, the chief analyst at the market research company CCS Insight, said that “Apple has a genuine issue of price.” He pointed out that in addition to inflation and growing expenses of living, which are wreaking havoc on customers, Apple is also facing increased costs linked with the components of the iPhone as well as transportation.
In an interview with CNN Business, Wood said, “My expectation is that Apple will probably have to nudge prices up.” On the other hand, he believes that Apple will do “all they can to make it as minimal as possible” in light of the stress that customers are experiencing.
In addition to the more general signs that the economy is deteriorating, Apple is also dealing with additional obstacles as it gets ready for the product launch the week after next. Inconsistencies in the supply chain brought on by China’s zero-Covid policy contributed, at least in part, to the 11% year-over-year decline in quarterly earnings that the business announced last month.
During the results call, Apple CEO Tim Cook said that there was “no evident evidence of macroeconomic effect” on iPhone sales. Cook was referring to the influence that iPhone sales had on the overall economy. Cook went on to say that the business even established a record for “both revenue and switchers to iPhone” during the third quarter, adding that “customers continue to discover that iPhone remains the gold standard for smartphones.”
Despite the fact that it is difficult to estimate by how much Apple will increase the price of its most recent iPhones, consistent sales of iPhones are connected in part to other projections from certain industry insiders that Apple would hike up the price of its most recent iPhones.
A famous Apple analyst located in Asia named Ming-Chi Kuo tweeted at the beginning of this month that he anticipated Apple would increase the average selling price of the iPhone 14 range by around 15% in comparison to the iPhone 13 lineup. (At the moment, the base price of the standard, non-mini version of the iPhone 13 is $799, while the base price of the iPhone 13 Pro is $999 and the base price of the Apple iPhone 13 Pro Max is $1,099.)
Analysts Dan Ives and John Katsingris of Wedbush Securities projected in a research note that was published on Monday that Apple will increase the price of its newest higher-end models by around $100.
According to the letter, “given component pricing increases as well as improved functionality on this new version, we think it is probable that Apple will implement a price increase of $100 for the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max.”
In addition to other changes, it is speculated that the cameras that will be included in the future iPhone Pro models will be improved in order to perhaps justify the price rise.
The analysts at Wedbush also projected that there would be a significant underlying demand for the new iPhone. They estimated that around 240 million of the 1 billion iPhone owners throughout the globe had not updated their phones in more than three and a half years.
Wood also pointed out that Apple’s iPhones are protected from the effects of macroeconomic forces in certain respects. When compared to other technological devices, consumers are increasingly seeing cell phones as “nearly vital.” “Whether you actually need an iPhone or not, that’s subject to discussion, but people who already have an iPhone are really devoted,” said Wood. “That’s a testament to the quality of the product.”
He continued by saying, “I also believe that Apple has certain advantages over competitors.” There are usually folks who are looking forward to the release of a new iPhone.
The Apple corporation has been using the codename “Far Out” to refer to the event that will take place on September 7. Invitations were sent out by the company last week.
Starting at one o’clock in the afternoon Eastern Time (ET), the event will be streamed live on Apple’s website from the company’s headquarters in Cupertino, California.
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