I really hope these price increase rumors are just a test balloon to see how people respond to it, then they announce at the same price points to make it seem like a good deal. I see no real reason why they should be raising the price on something that already has large well-padded margins.
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Other What will be the iPhone 14 cheap gate?
- Thread starter thadoggfather
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You have to consider Apple’s positioning and target market. Luxury items tend to not be affected by economic events. That’s been proven not just with Apple, wih other luxury brands as well. What you’re describing is true for a commodity brand. But Apple is not. People with disposable income to spend $1000 or more for a phone won’t be too much affected by trivial spending like utility and such.
Take the last 2 years of pandemic. There are many businesses that went out of business. Meanwhile Apple is generating record breaking revenues every quarter. In a downturn economy, consumer spending on luxury items usually are not significantly affected. People who can afford $1000 phone easily won’t just suddenly not be able to afford petrol or paying utility bills.
Price increase of the Pro models are probably for sure since it’s been rumored for a while. The question is whether Apple would up the price of the regular models. That’s the most recent rumor.
The iPhone is very much a commodity brand as it is consumed by people of all demographics. It’s not just bought by rich people with high disposable incomes unaffected by economic problems. That might be the case in less developed countries but in Western Europe and perhaps the US, iPhones are a consumer product usually obtainable by a wide range of people. They are offered on contract and this is perhaps the most common method for people to own such devices as it spreads the cost. It’s not a luxury product only owned by the wealthy and I don’t share your outlook at all.
Your point further points out that Apple won’t be affected as much by the economic downturn. You mentioned people in the US buying iPhones on contract. That means to these people, upgrading to a new iPhone might not even cost them any extra as their monthly bills stays the same. That will solidify further how the iPhones won’t be too much affected as people who want to upgrade will upgrade. And the Apple brand is a status symbol for many people. People have been shown to be willing to spend extra for status symbol, or to maintain them. That’s reality.
iPhone 14 Max will be like the second coming, it will become the best selling iPhone, leaping over the iPhone 6/6 Plus.
Some will, some won’t. Thanks to the unreliability of used iPhones (too many fake parts), many would prefer buying new, and when they go to an Apple store, there is no 13 Pros anymore.
Like a punch hole like any cheapo android? Punch Hole or notch is just the same, the real deal would be a under Display face id system. Putting a little bit display between the frame and the notch is nothing new or exciting.
You can always buy a new not activated iphone from trusted private sources. I do it all the time and so i got an iPhone 13 Pro Max for a 350€ discount. I also got a AW S7 from Amazon Warehouse deal, which was activated a month ago like new for 150€ less than the original price.
It’s doesn’t at all. iPhones aren’t immune from segments of people choosing to not upgrade. We’ve seen a large drop off of Netflix subscriptions in recent weeks apparently due to just a few pounds increase in price as people are prioritising their spending. Adding £10-30 a month onto a phone contract is not something that a lot of people will just shrug off. The US may be different as the iPhone is a lot more popular than it is here in Europe and I have no idea what their economy is doing.
I know for sure the iPhone is not a status symbol in my country as it’s a consumer brand like Sony in effect. I have no idea whether overall sales will be affected and I said before I don’t really care, I just know things are tight for a large proportion of society at the moment and £1k+ phone is one product that will be a less essential purchase for many. We are on the verge of recession and in a far worse position than we have been throughout the pandemic.
Do note that people ditching Netflix because they have substitutes. Disney+, Amazon prime, Hulu, various other streaming services. Streaming service becomes a commodity and people simply pick the better deal. It’s not like people stops all their subscriptions altogether because fuel prices went up. They’re simply substituting Netflix with other services.
I’d argue not the case with iPhone, since only Apple make iPhones. And there are already various surveys showing that iPhone users tend to stick with the platform. People that have their contracts up and due for an upgrade will probably just upgrade, regardless of other things. It won’t cost them any extra since they’re already laying it as part of their monthly bills. And when people see they can now get the largest iPhone for less, it will be a huge hit.
Only few more months to go
Do note that people ditching Netflix because they have substitutes. Disney+, Amazon prime, Hulu, various other streaming services. Streaming service becomes a commodity and people simply pick the better deal. It’s not like people stops all their subscriptions altogether because fuel prices went up. They’re simply substituting Netflix with other services.
I’d argue not the case with iPhone, since only Apple make iPhones. And there are already various surveys showing that iPhone users tend to stick with the platform. People that have their contracts up and due for an upgrade will probably just upgrade, regardless of other things. It won’t cost them any extra since they’re already laying it as part of their monthly bills. And when people see they can now get the largest iPhone for less, it will be a huge hit.
Only few more months to go
Anybody with an iPhone from the last 3 years also has the choice to keep it longer seeing as the last few releases and the rumoured up and coming one are very similar. Like Netflix, people also have choices. My contract is up in September and I have an iPhone 12. I would like a new phone but I certainly don’t need one and I am under no illusions an iPhone 14 is not going to be hugely different. People on this forum have a very different approach to the average person who is not a phone enthusiast. It’s no secret people are keeping phone longer than compared to pre 2015 for example and upgrades have been down for consecutive years across the industry. Apple has always done well but occupy a small percentage of the market. I know lots of people with XS’s and XR’s who don’t get the buzz that people like yourself do. Your statement about people not seeing the price difference because it’s in their contract is absolutely false.
We won’t know the true scale anyway as Apple haven’t reported sales for quite a few years now. We just get analyst articles hinting whether it’s been a good or bad year. None of this affects us anyway.
Exactly ever since installment plans started it came into price range for more. But if you look at historical pricing, that's also when the prices rose.
BOE is already a thing isnt it ?-iPad mini 6 has jelly scroll gate and poorer contrast screen gate than mini 5
-256 ssd has single 256 nand gate so halved read speeds and 2/3 writes for the MacBook Air m2 gate.
-Air 5 more flex gate than air 4
What’s next ?
allowing BOE to make these oled screens?
A14-again-for-more-$$ gate?
Less ram on non pro than previous year non pro?
Slower less accurate Face ID somehow with the hole punch gate?
fingerprint magnet gate like we're seeing with Midnight M2? where it looks like ive been barefisting chicken tendies before caressing the aloomineum?
A notch-brought-more value gate for the Pro's that are a hole punch?
Tim Cook's solo album baked into iOS 16 music app and cannot be removed, and is deeply embedded in the Secure Enclave verification process, gate?
...Water gate, the internals of the device being less coveted by water sealant than previous gens?
The possibilities are endless as the economy and inflation have really done a number on mums and pops Apple shop
btw thanks ,u cracked me up
Could be anything. Apple always pushing cost down to cents. Apple usually still ends up ahead after any fines or lawsuits if went too far vs quality. They have to save something for next year so never getting the best we could get.