Discounts are nice. Will be nice to have similar discounts in other countries too.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Apple Cuts iPhone 14 Pro Prices in China by Up to $118 in Rare Sales Push
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Price drops in China proves my previous point that they will drop prices if customers stop buying.
I'll wait until they drop the price in the US. As far as price drops in China, customers may not have stopped buying as much as inability to purchase. And now that the backlog is easing Apple wants to speed the sales cycle. So you can spin the rational any which way.
The US never had price increases at the rate the rest of the world has. Apple has been protecting their home market passing costs onto other countries. Prices have increased year on year since 2017 here in the UK.
All resellers dropping prices doesn’t suggest a supply issue.
You wouldn’t as a business drop pricing due to supply, doesn’t make sense. Short supply would show the product is so in demand they can’t make them fast enough so pricing would be static or even increase.
So no, you cannot spin the rational any which way as you put it.
Speaking as an Asian guy we love bargains and getting things at decent value. Apples price to value doesn’t add up currently. I’ve got many friends and relatives in China who specifically said they won’t buy Apple due to the pricing.
As the other poster said, the US hasn’t had the prices increases the rest of the world has as Apple have protected their home market. Try paying UK and Euro pricing right now and see how many Americans would be happy with that. There’s a reason why demand here has fallen and it has everything to do with price hikes in the middle of a financial crisis.
Apple has cut the price of its latest high-end iPhones in China in an apparent attempt to offset dwindling demand in the country (via Bloomberg).
The discounts came around the end of the Lunar New Year season, when retailers typically expect an increase in footfall before schools reopen. Inventory for the iPhone 14 Pro models at some stores has reportedly sold out already.
Did anyone else catch this part in the article?
What in the actual for real does Football increase before school re-opens have ANYTHING to do with Apple retails sales or sales of anything not related to the sport of football (aka Soccer) ????
Was it a typo and meant to say and increase in foot traffic before schools re-open?
Speaking as a brotha I too love a bargain.
But seriously EVERYBODY loves bargains. The value of a product shouldn’t diminish if the price lowers ~ usually. So expensive items sought after has a decent price drop that’s a great value
Speaking as a brotha I too love a bargain.
But seriously EVERYBODY loves bargains. The value of a product shouldn’t diminish if the price lowers ~ usually. So expensive items sought after has a decent price drop that’s a great value
Of course everybody loves a bargain but we Asians seem to love it even more 😂 That’s why nearly every face is Asian busting through doors on Oxford Street in London come Boxing day sales lol.
No, I didn’t mean lowering price would lower the quality of the product. But Apple is currently overcharging for what it provides.
Now this talk of an ultra tier above the pro line is crazy. Just so they can charge even more for features that should be going into the Pro line.
I disagreed with the creation of the pro line too because those features could have gone into what is now the base model iPhone 14. Only a few years ago the iPhone 14 would have been the only iPhone and received all the new features anyway at a much lower price point.
The exchange rates (stronger dollar) had a lot to do with price increases. For example, when the iPhone 14 launched in mid-September, the exchange rate was around 1 GBP = $1.15. The pre-VAT price of a 128GB iPhone 14 in the UK is £707 which put the price in USD at around $813. The pre-sales tax price of the same phone in the U.S. is $829.
How can you say Apple was "protecting the home market" when the UK launch price was actually LOWER than the U.S. price?
Yes, iPhone demand has fallen but not as much as various other brands or the smartphone industry average. Supply chain issues were also a notable factor.
What was the outright US price (not pre tax) compared to the full UK RRP?
Demand was down mostly because in September 2022 the UK and Europe were in the midst of the worst cost of living crisis for 30 years and mobile phone upgrades were in the same category as buying a new car. Consumers aren't justifying £150 price increases because of a weak pound, they are simply less inclined to buy.
State and local sales tax can vary in the U.S. but your comment was specially about Apple’s actions. State and local sales taxes and VAT are not controlled by Apple.
Let's further look at the price increases which you claim were done overseas so Apple could "protect the home market." In September 2021 when the iPhone 13 launched, the pre-VAT price of a 128GB iPhone 13 was £649 which at the time was equal to around $889 USD. As I previously posted, the pre-VAT price of the 128GB iPhone 14 at launch in the UK was equal to around $813 USD.
$889 to $813 is actually a price DECREASE in USD. Explain to me how you can say Apple was "protecting the home market" when the price of the iPhone 14 in my example was REDUCED versus the 13's price and LESS than the price of same phone in the U.S.
I acknowledged demand was down. My point regarding demand was that iPhones sales were not down as much as other brands or the overall industry average. In that sense, Apple did better than the market.
No consumer pays a pre-VAT cost. I asked what the final RRP difference was between the US and UK? The price of an iPhone 13 was £779, iPhone 13 Pro was £949 and the 13 Pro Max was £1049. Contrast that to this year and the iPhone 14 was £849, 14 Plus £949, iPhone 14 Pro £1099 and the 14 Pro Max was £1199. No consumer gives a toss about anything other than the total retail cost increasing. Apple factors in the 20% VAT when creating their strategy for the UK market and always have, even when it was 17.5%.
I said Apple protected the US market by not increasing prices, for example an iPhone 13 Pro and 14 Pro were both $999 at launch. Sales tax was added to this as thr US have a weird way of advertsing costs to make the consumer think things are cheaper than they are, but what was the cost average for these products (+ sales tax 2.9-7.5%)? You say we are paying less, so what are the figures for comparison?
Yes but this discussion is about Apple’s pricing, not Apple's pricing plus government taxes. You can't blame Apple for what local or national government’s charge.
Again, your comment was that the U.S. hasn't seen price increases like the rest of the world because Apple is protecting the home market. If Apple is supposedly "protecting the home market" by keeping prices the same in home market currency (USD) then they must REALLY be protecting the UK as they actually DECREASED prices in home market currency (USD) as I showed in my example.
Apple actually lowers its USD revenue (and I assume profits) on phones sold in the UK and how do some UK citizens respond? They say Apple is greedy, protecting the home market, etc. Not very nice or fair things to be saying.
They haven’t decreased prices in the UK though with a £150 increase at retail for the same models in the range. Apple haven’t done us any favours whatsoever on pricing so it is completely justified for consumers to criticise an over inflation increase. Converting this sim into a foreign currency to try and justify it is absolutely absurd.
They have decreased UK prices in Apple’s "home country" currency (USD) while keeping prices in same currency unchanged (not decreasing like in the UK) in the U.S. Clearly, a reason prices are higher in GBP is because of the currency exchange rate.
Apple's profit margin was actually lower last quarter because they weren’t "greedily" raising prices. The prices increased in GBP because of the exchange rate which was no benefit to Apple regardless of what you want to think. Again, Apple actually lowered prices in its home country currency (USD) in the UK and this contributed to Apple’s lower margins.
If the prices weren’t lowered enough for you, fine but enough with the "Apple greed" and "Apple protecting their home market" nonsense. Also, stop trying to blame Apple for UK's VAT.
£949 to £1099 and £1049 to £1199 in 12 months is not ‘lowering it enough for me’ by any stretch of the imagination. Other manufacturers maintained pricing during this period and Apple didn’t, so I will criticise from a consumers point of view. The only loser in this scenario if the party that isn’t selling as many products, not the person saving their money by keeping a phone for a longer period of time. Ultimately this will drive consumers to cheaper alternatives and perhaps the reason Android is increasing its popularity further in Europe.
At no point have I blamed Apple for VAT in the UK. This inclusion has been around longer than I have and nobody thinks Apple is responsible for every single product sold including it. Let’s be realistic
.
I wouldn’t be happy with the change in iPhone prices either. I’m not sure if that would deter me from making a purchase though. I suppose I could opt for a lower cost android, but I don’t think I’d be happy. At least the cost of petroleum is manageable.
Perhaps you are finally starting to admit Apple did lower prices (even though not as much as you would've wanted) which is a heck of a lot better than the "Apple is protecting the home market" nonsense you had been saying.
Other phone manufacturers don't necessarily release new models when Apple does. One of Apple's key competitors, for example, is Samsung which just launched its Galaxy S23 line at higher GBP prices than their S22 line from a year ago.
The market is down but Apple's iPhone sales didn’t drop as much as other brands, or the smartphone industry overall.
Unless they have a particularly old phone, I imagine plenty of people are simply holding onto what they have (whether iPhone or Android) for now.
Then stop quoting prices with VAT when you are talking about APPLE prices or comparing against prices in the U.S. Apple doesn't control or benefit from VAT overseas or sales tax in the U.S.
Buy an older iPhone or keep an iPhone for a number of years is what most seem to do. Petroleum isn’t manageable here, we pay nearly double what you guys do which hasn’t helped reduce the already enormous living costs.
Finally starting to admit? I’ve given you figures showing they increased by £150 in a year. That’s an increase, at least how I was taught to interpret a higher number.
Apples iPhone sales are down 13% to the 16% industry overall figure, what is great news. I hope we see a further drop over the next 10 months. I think the cost of living crisis is changing the way consumers prioritise purchases and hopefully expensive smartphones will be a short lived and niche fad.
I can only quote VAT prices. I live in the UK and those are the only prices advertised and used by the consumer here. What do you want me to do, take VAT off just to compare to US prices? How about you confirm what you actually pay for an iPhone rather than dodging that question three times? Apple factors in VAT when trading in the UK, so they certainly benefit from increasing the underlying cost.
I wasn’t trying to suggest it was good news, just better than the sales performance of other smartphone manufacturers and the industry overall. You claim other brands "maintained pricing" and yet it's Apple that did better than the industry average. Besides, it's not like Apple hasn't seen drops in iPhone sales before.
It's not at all difficult to calculate a price without VAT. Besides, Apple's own website shows pricing with VAT and the approximate VAT amount. All someone would have to do is deduct one from the other.
Including VAT in the price is misleading when talking/complaining about APPLE pricing or comparing to U.S. retail pricing.
As I already explained, state and local sales tax can vary in the U.S. This is why advertised U.S. retail prices don't include tax. What someone pays in one city/state may be completely different than what someone pays in another city/state.
As I also already explained, Apple doesn't control VAT or sales tax so discussions about things like APPLE UK pricing versus U.S. pricing, claims about Apple greed, protecting the home market, etc. should have nothing to do with VAT or sales tax. What Apple charges and what governments charge are separate matters.
Even if I was to take the pre-VAT cost iPhone 14 Pro which is £874.17 ($1064.34) and compare that to a pre sales tax US price of $999.00, It’s still $65.00 cheaper to US consumers. You have suggested we pay less and in fact get it cheaper, when we don’t. If your sales tax is significantly more than 20% to drive this cost up further than ours then fine, but you’re only interested in comparing Apples baseline cost.
The UK Apple Store doesn’t list products without VAT and very few retailers do unless it’s a business account where VAT can be claimed back.
Isn't the UK price (with VAT) for a 128GB iPhone 14 Pro £1,099? Wouldn't that make the pre-VAT price around £915? Are some UK retailers selling it at a discount (£1,049)?
My comments were about pricing (and exchange rate) at time of launch. I gave examples of UK launch prices (September 2022) that were lower when converted to USD than prices for same phones in U.S. I have also given examples on this forum of some prices being higher.
Additionally, I have given examples of launch pricing for iPhones in the UK having dropped in Apple's home country currency (USD) in September 2022 versus September 2021 to point out how your "protecting their home market" comment was nonsense.
Apple doesn't tend to adjust prices up or down during the year (between launches) due to exchange rate changes.
For discussions about Apple pricing, alleged Apple greed, etc., it only makes sense to talk about Apple pricing alone and not Apple pricing plus government taxes. Again, what Apple charges and what governments charge are separate matters.
The Apple UK store website shows price with VAT plus the approximate VAT amount (example below, I added the arrow) but, as I stated, it's very easy to calculate even if they didn’t do that.
What’s great news? That your local economy is going down the tubes and apple with it? It’s my opinion that discretionary consumer electronic purchases are fairly inelastic with respect to the price. There might be temporary sales to spur consumer demand, but prices are not going to go into the ground.
I also think the auto industry is the barometer of discretionary spending. If people aren’t buying cars they aren’t buying other things.