Thought Leadership
Apple’s new Pro models are encountering less interest than expected, according to a market analyst.
Since September 12, customers in the US and many other countries have been able to pre-order the iPhone 18 Pro and the iPhone 18 Pro Max. Analyst Jeff Pu from GF Securities considers the wait times so far to be weak in an investor note and has therefore adjusted his production forecasts. This affects both the Pro series and the upcoming foldable iPhone, the iPhone Duo.
Delivery times differ greatly by model
Those opting for the iPhone 18 Pro Max with 256 or 512 gigabytes of storage currently have to expect three to four weeks in the US, regardless of the color. The same applies to the Burgundy variant with 1 terabyte. In China, Pu cites a wait time of two to three weeks for the Pro Max in Glacier with 256 and 512 gigabytes. He provides no specific details regarding delivery times for Germany or other European countries.
For other configurations, however, demand appears to be lower: For the Pro Max with 1 terabyte in Black or Glacier, the analyst cites only one to two weeks in the US. This becomes even clearer with the 1-terabyte model in Silver and most 2-terabyte variants, which are expected to be available right at launch this Friday. The regular iPhone 18 Pro is also available almost continuously right away, with only the Burgundy edition with 256 gigabytes being an exception.
Price and lack of new features as possible reasons
According to Pu, the weaker demand is primarily due to increased prices, especially for models with high storage capacity, as well as what he considers modest technical improvements over the previous year. In the US, the iPhone 18 Pro starts at 1,199 US dollars, and the iPhone 18 Pro Max at 1,299 US dollars. The top-tier editions with 2 terabytes cost up to 2,399 and 2,499 US dollars, respectively.
The analyst also assumes that a portion of the buyer base prefers to wait for the iPhone Duo. For the foldable device, the pre-order phase begins on October 16, with deliveries scheduled to start on October 23. Prices start at 1,999 US dollars for the 256-gigabyte version and go up to 3,199 US dollars for the 2-terabyte model.
Production figures also revised downward
Pu has also lowered his estimate for the production volume of the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max to 72 million units. As the reason, he cites manufacturing difficulties with the new camera featuring a variable aperture. For the iPhone Duo, he reduced his expectations for the current year from 7 million to 6 million produced devices. The reason for this is said to be issues in manufacturing the hinge.
(Editorial Team)
