iPhone 15's Record High Production Costs Could Push Up iPhone 16 Prices
The iPhone 15's production costs are appreciably higher than those of last year's iPhone 14 models, marking record high component prices that Apple could pass onto customers in 2024, Nikkei Asia reports.
The iPhone 15 Pro Max is calculated to cost $558, a 12% increase over the iPhone 14 Pro Max model released in 2022. This is a record high for the total cost of an iPhone's components. From 2018 to 2021, the total cost of parts for Apple's iPhone "Pro Max" models ranged from $400 to $450. Component costs rose around 20% in 2022 before reaching today's record high of $558.
The cost of the iPhone 15 Pro Max's telephoto camera now stands at $30, a 380% increase over the previous model. Likewise, the titanium frame costs $50, a 43% increase over the stainless steel frame of previous devices. The A17 Pro chip comes in at $130, a 27% increase over the A16 Bionic chip.
The other models in the iPhone 15 lineup are also not immune to cost increases. The standard iPhone 15's components come in at $423, a 16% increase compared to the iPhone 14. The iPhone 15 Plus is calculated at $442, a 10% increase over its predecessor, while the iPhone 15 Pro grew by 8% to $523.
Despite increased costs, Apple did not increase the retail prices of any of its iPhone models this year and chose to absorb the impact of increased expenses. The only notable change was the discontinuation of the 128GB Pro Max model, meaning that users who normally purchased the 128GB model now have to pay $100 more to obtain the device.
In collaboration with Nikkei, Tokyo-based research company Fomalhaut Techno Solutions believes that if Apple continues to absorb the impact of increased production costs, its bottom line will soon take a hit. As a result, Apple may finally choose to hike iPhone retail prices upon the launch of next year's iPhone 16 lineup.
Popular Stories
Apple is planning for a major design overhaul of the iPhone, iPad, and Mac interfaces with the introduction of iOS 19, iPadOS 19, and macOS 16 later this year, reports Bloomberg. The update will "fundamentally change" the look of Apple's operating system, introducing a more consistent cross-platform experience.
Apple plans to update the style of icons, menus, apps, windows, and system...
The upcoming iOS 18.4 update for the iPhone includes a smaller but meaningful improvement for Apple's in-car iPhone mirroring system CarPlay.
Specifically, CarPlay now shows a third row of icons, up from two rows previously. However, this change is only visible in vehicles with a larger center display. For example, a MacRumors Forums member noticed the change in a Toyota Tundra with a...
Apple One allows you to subscribe to up to six Apple services for one discounted monthly price. There are three Apple One tiers: Individual, Family, and Premier.
Over the last month, the highest-end Apple One Premier plan has gained two additional perks.
Here is what Apple One Premier already included, for $37.95 per month:Apple Music
Apple TV+
Apple Arcade
Apple News+
Apple Fitness+...
Despite being released over two years ago, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 continue to dominate the wireless earbud market. However, with the AirPods Pro 3 expected to launch in 2025, anyone thinking of buying Apple's premium earbuds may be wondering if the next generation is worth holding out for.
Apart from their audio and noise-canceling performance, which are generally regarded as excellent for...
Apple is set to release iOS 18.4 in early April, bringing further refinements to Apple Intelligence features, a neat new capability to iPhone 15 Pro devices, new emoji, and more.
While not quite as packed with new features as Apple's preceding iOS 18 point releases, iOS 18.4 still introduces enhancements that aim to make your iPhone smarter and more intuitive. Below, we've listed 12 new...
YouTuber iDeviceHelp on Friday posted a video that shows off mockups of Apple's forthcoming iPhone 17 models that are purportedly based on "internal documents." We're sharing the video here since it was made in collaboration with leaker Majin Bu, who last month published similar iPhone 17 renders that were widely corroborated by separate leakers with links to Apple's Chinese supply chain....
Apple employees are internally testing iOS 18.3.2 for iPhones, according to our website's visitor logs, which have been a reliable indicator of upcoming iOS versions. The software update should be released in the next week or two.
iOS 18.3.2 will be a minor update that addresses software bugs and/or security vulnerabilities. Don't expect any new features.
iOS 18.3.2 will be an interim...
iPhones are finally getting a much-requested setting, but availability is limited.
The upcoming iOS 18.4 update introduces an option to set a default navigation app, other than Apple Maps, but unfortunately this new setting is limited to users in the EU. There, you can now set an app like Google Maps or Waze as your default navigation app on the iPhone by opening the Settings app and tapping ...
Apple today released iOS 18.3.2 and iPadOS 18.3.2, minor updates for the iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 operating systems that came out last September. iOS 18.3.2 and iOS 18.3.2 come a month after Apple released iOS 18.3.1 and iPadOS 18.3.1.
The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General > Software Update.
According to Apple's release...
