Apple CEO Tim Cook Visits China Amid Reports of Lower iPhone 15 Sales

[sw1tcher]

Of course this is happening they are taking our technology product and copying it and selling it as their own.

"our technology" 🤣

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Huawei Technologies Co.’s Mate 60 Pro smartphone employs an unusually high proportion of Chinese parts, in addition to its main processor, a sign of the country’s progress in developing domestic tech capabilities.



So many Chinese companies have been placed on the U.S.'s Entity List over the years. Eventually the Chinese will figure out a way to develop their own home-grown tech. And the Mate 60 Pro shows it.

 

[applepotato666]

And even more important as the iPhone continues to be a stagnant product. The difference from the 12 to 15 is amazingly small. Faster CPU, better camera, and ???? And in real life I don't even see a speed difference. After the joke of a 15 launch, people here were basically saying the iPhone is a mature product, so what do you expect in innovation.

Look at the Chinese makers and Samsung today to see where iPhone will be heading in the next 5-10 years.

Timmy should be selling Pepsi with John Sculley, he wants to be CEO where he can sell the same product for 30 years and be applauded for it. Tim (What's a computer) Cook, has no business being anywhere near an innovation company. Remember that Apple had record profits under Sculley and he was the highest paid tech CEO -- then a couple of years later Apple was on the edge of bankruptcy and it took Steve Jobs and a $150 million investment from Microsoft to save them. What Timmy's doing now is the exact same as Sculley -- stagnant products, a mess of product lines that make no sense, locking down the ecosystem, killing user hardware upgrades, and pricing that makes them a laughing stock. The case wheels, the vesa mount.

Apple as an innovative tech company no longer exists. It's traded everything for short term profit and done it extremely well. The eventual outcome is inevitable.

I've been saying that Apple doesn't have to fight to advance its tech over the other companies because iPhone users aren't really asking for a folding phone, zoom to Mars, and a full charge in 6 minutes. Yes, the next iPhones will probably get that and in the short term, we'll rave on about it and act like nobody else has done it before as Android users like to tell us 😁 But what Apple will have to fight about is to keep its premium image and pricing on their major product, as there's only so much a smartphone can do. The reality is that Apple would be done without the iPhone and the iPhone is at the heart of pretty much every other product they make. The main reason to pay more for an iPhone was always design and the general user experience but that has stagnated too, and doesn't feel like it's a huge priority anymore at Apple. Nowadays the mid-rangers can handle everything most people will do, they have good cameras, and are now even built with good materials. Mid-rangers from every other company have simply caught up. Coupled with the fact that the iPhone is not a status symbol like it used to be in China and Europe anymore, which was always one of the big reasons Apple's strategy worked, it starts falling apart. Samsung has a nearly 50% market share in my country and keeps on growing. Apple is stealing some away from the Chinese companies slowly but keep in mind this is a European country with good incomes. People are starting to care more about what the thing does and realizing $500 and $999 gives you the same. Tim Cook is right to be concerned although I don't think that would be the reason he's visiting.

 

[imola.zhp]

The devices are plateauing, nothing more, nothing less. My iPhone 13 Pro is still working fine, I have upgraded every 24 months prior to purchasing the 13 Pro, but I see no real reason to purchase the 15 Pro. We'll see what the 16 has to offer, I may be switching to a 3-year upgrade cycle which I actually considered coming from my previous device but ultimately gave in and upgraded.

 

[boswald]

In some parts of the world, the iPhone is still a luxury. People who barely make a living wage probably won’t be spending their money on it when cheaper alternatives exist.

 

[aParkerMusic]

Good point, he has managed well the Apple car fail, let’s see what happens with vision pro, if he can pull that out it will be an indicator Apple still has the Steve & Co. dna hidden somewhere.

Tell us more about how the ”AppleCar” has failed!

 

[Zensō]

The stagnation within Apple is coming back to haunt them. We need some real design innovation and a reality check on pricing, neither of which are likely to be coming anytime soon.

 

[krspkbl]

Heres the photo TC uploaded to Weibo. Its bad, but not because of the 15PM camera, but because of compression/resizing.

that's actually a nice photo but yeah...no high resolution/uncompressed version of it?

 

[frex]

economic slow down impact middle class and young consumers the most, which is the key reason of sales drop.

nothing will change the trend much.

 

[Ameer_1]

I wonder if he's going to ask people why they don't use iPhones. Apple is turning into Toyota where each year you can barely tell a difference between the new and previous model. Each year the base model is basically the same and the pro model's only difference is three cameras and camera improvement. People are starting to realize that their iPhone Xr can basically still do the same thing as a new iPhone especially if the person doesn't take many pictures. People realize that iMessage, Apps, music, and FaceTime work practically the same on any iPhone so there's no point in upgrading.

 

[sw1tcher]

economic slow down impact middle class and young consumers the most, which is the key reason of sales drop.

It's strange how this economic slow down is impacting iPhone 15 sales, but not having the same effects on Huawei Mate 60 series sales.

Huawei saw a sellout launch of Mate 60 Pro model on September 3 · TechNode

Huawei’s newly launched Mate 60 Pro sold out soon after online platforms such as Huawei VMall, Taobao, and JD.com kicked off the full-scale launch of the

technode.com

Huawei ups its smartphone sales target amid Mate 60 popularity: report

Huawei’s Mate 60 Pro is expected to provide a tough challenge for Apple in China as US tech giant releases its new iPhone 15.

www.scmp.com

 

[Darren.h]

well so many bad reports on the iPhone 15. surprised they are even selling here well in the USA

Screen Burn in alone would really piss me off.

 

[Mac_The_Ripper]

well so many bad reports on the iPhone 15. surprised they are even selling here well in the USA

Screen Burn in alone would really piss me off.

Sheep gotta sheep! Baaah! 🤣

 

[Kevin2055]

Apple CEO Tim Cook has made a surprise visit to China amid reports that iPhone 15 sales are down in the country compared to last year's iPhone 14 models (via Bloomberg).

Cook visited an Apple's Taikoo Li store in Chengdu to watch a local gaming tournament for the major Tencent game "Honor of Kings" and talk to shoppers and staff. Cook later posted about the event on Weibo with a short video, saying that "the energy tonight was off the charts!" Cook then visited a Yucheng elementary school to see how students use the iPad to support local culture.

The appearance comes just a day after two Counterpoint Research studies claimed that iPhone 15 sales are down 4.5% versus last year's iPhone 14 lineup in China, causing Apple's share price to fall. As a result, Cook's visit is being widely associated with concern about iPhone 15 sales in China across various mainstream media outlets.

Cook's posts on Weibo during the trip have also aroused a usual amount of ire. For example, Cook shared a photo of Chengdu at night shot on an iPhone 15 Pro Max. The post was then "flooded with complaints" about the ostensibly poor quality of the image and unfavorable comparisons to pictures from Chinese devices like Huawei's recently Mate 60 Pro.

Article Link: Apple CEO Tim Cook Visits China Amid Reports of Lower iPhone 15 Sales

I have 0 surprise iPhone 15 pro sold less than 14 pro. 15 pro vs 14 pro has so little improvement compared with 14 pro vs 13 pro.

 

[Kevin2055]

Of course this is happening they are taking our technology product and copying it and selling it as their own.

please blame Android

 

[Any name]

I'm missing the connection between a trip and sales going down. Is it assumed that his "celebrity" will help increase sales? Surely market research could be done by locals better than the CEO coming into a small part of the country too.

Yeah he gonna sell them on the streets of Chengdu: “buy your mom an iPhone?”

 

[Krispykrme]

Reality is this is only going to continue as the Chinese phone makers continue to improve.

It’s not Chinese phone maker is improving.

It’s called unfair business practice and government interference by the Chinese.

 

[tomtad]

It’s not Chinese phone maker is improving.

It’s called unfair business practice and government interference by the Chinese.

I certainly don't doubt that.

I would disagree with Chinese manufacturers not improving however. There phones are now very competitive. Compared to where they were 5 years ago to today and it's night and day.

 

[ericinboston]

The devices are plateauing, nothing more, nothing less. My iPhone 13 Pro is still working fine, I have upgraded every 24 months prior to purchasing the 13 Pro, but I see no real reason to purchase the 15 Pro. We'll see what the 16 has to offer, I may be switching to a 3-year upgrade cycle which I actually considered coming from my previous device but ultimately gave in and upgraded.

I have the 13 Pro also and desperately wanted to upgrade to the 15 to get a 1TB model. But there's absolutely nothing enticing for me to upgrade. Before the 13 Pro I had a 7 Plus so that's about 6 years of innovation. I still think that while the 13 Pro takes some great photos, they look terrible once you start zooming in on the photo. I still have JPGs from my old Sony a-350 camera from 15 years ago that look stunning at 4592x3056 zoomed in quite a lot! And I don't even know how to use the camera other than focus and pressing the button. The 13 Pro at 4032x3024 looks quite blah once you start zooming in. It's not all megapixels...a lot is the lens themselves. But after 15 years, I would have thought Apple's $1000+ cameras (I mean phones) would have at least matched the Sony.

 

[hugodrax]

I bet he is there to tell the bosses to cut wages because sales slowdown and profits need to grow. There is no other reason for him to visit there when sales slow down except to get cost concessions.

 

[hugodrax]

I'm missing the connection between a trip and sales going down. Is it assumed that his "celebrity" will help increase sales? Surely market research could be done by locals better than the CEO coming into a small part of the country too.

To talk to bossman and tell him to drive those wages down.

 

[Kierkegaarden]

Does anyone really think Tim Cook dropped everything to visit China just because a research firm, based in Hong Kong, released a report that claims iPhone sales are down slightly? Ridiculous.

 

[DevNull0]

I wonder if he's going to ask people why they don't use iPhones. Apple is turning into Toyota where each year you can barely tell a difference between the new and previous model. Each year the base model is basically the same and the pro model's only difference is three cameras and camera improvement. People are starting to realize that their iPhone Xr can basically still do the same thing as a new iPhone especially if the person doesn't take many pictures. People realize that iMessage, Apps, music, and FaceTime work practically the same on any iPhone so there's no point in upgrading.

I'm still using my Xr, and I've been waiting 3 years hoping for a reason to upgrade it. Instead, I recently had the battery replaced. I could not care less about the camera, and even if the latest CPU is xx% faster, I don't see any difference in the phone in actual use.

That said, the past 6 months, even with a new battery, my Xr has gotten really slow a lot of the time, some times it won't connect to wifi or cellular and takes a minute to load a page. Often my airpods break up the sound with long patches of loud static, and lots of other problems. A big part of me thinks Apple pressed the 'make them buy new phones' button.

 

[Shanesan]

Guess they'll have to cancel the whole iPhone lineup now, just like they did the Mini.

 

[Apple_Glen_UK]

Is it just me, or is this picture a bit trippy - he's clearly stood in front of the image of the iPhone, but it looks like Tim's head is actually displayed on the screen and at a different angle to the rest of his body.

I thought the same. I was going to ask; where can I download that wallpaper!? 😄

 

[neuropsychguy]

Well you have no evidence for such accusation. It may or may not be state-sponsored.


Uh, that's just long shot. Care to provide any examples? I really disagree with this statement and while there may be some individuals doing such thing, it definitely is not something widespread - here in MacRumors.

"It may or may not be state-sponsored." I agree, that's what I said. It could be random bored people in China (or anywhere else) with strong nationalistic (or anti-U.S.) feelings. It could be people who for whatever reason hate Apple and want to post about it online. It could be people who work for Huawei. It could be people who hate corporations. It could be people who hate capitalism.

"while there may be some individuals doing such thing, it definitely is not something widespread"

I said there are people who do it ("the commenters who come to MR to complain"), which is true. Is it not your experience to see people complaining on MacRumors about trivial things? Almost every thread has some. Look for people who say things like "Tim Apple" or are new accounts (meaning no prior posts or just a couple, usually years ago) that say, "major major major problem" with some Apple device and then mostly ignore people trying to offer help or a different experience. There are also commenters who essentially never say anything positive about Apple or any Apple product. I won't name handles but there are often a few in popular threads. Trolling exists.

For example, check this thread, it shouldn't be difficult to find an example of someone who mainly complains about Apple: https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/ios-17-1-fixes-iphone-display-image-retention-issue.2407869/