iPhone 16 Pro Demand Has Been Lower Than Expected, Analyst Says

Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo today said demand for the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max has been "lower than expected" since the devices became available to pre-order in the U.S. and dozens of other countries on Friday. Kuo said his data is based on a "supply chain survey" and shipping estimates listed on Apple's online store.

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Kuo estimated that sales of all four iPhone 16 models reached about 37 million units in the first weekend after Apple began accepting pre-orders, which is down nearly 13% compared to first-weekend sales of the iPhone 15 series last year. The analyst said a key factor for the decline is the lower demand for the Pro models, with first-weekend sales of the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max estimated to be down 27% and 16%, respectively, compared to iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max sales during the equivalent period last year.

The standard iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus have seen higher demand than the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus during the first weekend of sales, but this has not been enough to offset the lower demand for the Pro models, according to Kuo.

Kuo said a major reason for the iPhone 16 Pro models having lower-than-expected demand is that Apple Intelligence will not be available on the devices when they launch on Friday. Instead, the first Apple Intelligence features are rolling out with iOS 18.1 in October. In addition, the analyst said the iPhone is facing "intense competition" in China.

Related Roundup: iPhone 16 Pro

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Top Rated Comments

Klae17 Avatar
12 weeks ago
At this point, I'm keeping my iPhone 14 Pro out of spite.
Score: 130 Votes (Like | Disagree)
dcdunk Avatar
12 weeks ago
hmmm, so that's what happens when you dripfeed new features year after year. not surprised
Score: 121 Votes (Like | Disagree)
grilledcheesesandwich Avatar
12 weeks ago
You’re telling me the thinner bezels didn’t get people to upgrade?
Score: 81 Votes (Like | Disagree)
klasma Avatar
12 weeks ago

Kuo said a major reason for the iPhone 16 Pro models having lower-than-expected demand is that Apple Intelligence will not be available on the devices when they launch on Friday.
I kinda doubt that that’s the main reason.
Score: 76 Votes (Like | Disagree)
thermal Avatar
12 weeks ago
iPhone 16 Pro weight has increased too much for me. More interested in regular 16 or 15 Pro (to replace my iPhone 13) due to weight.
Score: 65 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Andres Cantu Avatar
12 weeks ago
People are voting with their wallets.

And I really don’t think the lower demand is due to Apple Intelligence launching until later. I don’t think the average consumer will wait because they know it will launch later. I would think they think it will launch on day 1.
Score: 55 Votes (Like | Disagree)