LCD, bezels, too big, no 3D touch. It's a solid device but the compromises killed it before it was even released.
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iPhone XR If the iPhone XR is the “cheaper” iPhone X many customers have wanted, why are sales reportedly slow
- Thread starter Hieveryone
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I think the perception out there is iPhones have gone up in price so people have been reluctant to upgrade. Older iPhones are also still working well for a lot of people so they put off upgrading as it’s often an unnecessary expense. I know a lot of people who fit in these categories. They don’t research smartphones therefore just go on what they’ve heard. You also have to factor in that a lot of sales are generated by people seeing what other people are using and if that isn’t the new iPhones then many are unaware of what they are.
Add to this that carriers are also selling the iPhone 8/8+ and the deals are rather attractive right now. Many consumers will see those and not look any further. The XR is perhaps the best iPhone for what it offers that Apple releases this year and it’s the one they are advertising the most. However it’s come at a time when upgrades are slow so it’s no wonder it’s not going to be as popular as an iPhone 6.
Add to this that carriers are also selling the iPhone 8/8+ and the deals are rather attractive right now. Many consumers will see those and not look any further. The XR is perhaps the best iPhone for what it offers that Apple releases this year and it’s the one they are advertising the most. However it’s come at a time when upgrades are slow so it’s no wonder it’s not going to be as popular as an iPhone 6.
Keyword is analysts. These guys simply guess, because nobody knows actual numbers than Apple. So if you believe what a third party says about iPhone sales, you will have that question you have in mind.
I don’t think you can really say people fit an ‘XR crowd’ as these are iPhone users in general. There’s no elite supergroup who spend more or less here. Not seeing them in the wild is misleading too as Apple said the iPhone X sold brilliantly yet in many places were rather than rocking horse poo. I still see very very few X style devices so I think perhaps the whole new generation are less popular if we go by that.
1.) Analaysts also said the 2017 iPhone X would be a failure and yet, Cook stated the X became the best selling iPhone in the first quarter of 2018.
2.) Analaysts also said the Apple Watch would flop, and it’s now one of the top selling smart watches in the world.
Don’t rely on what Analaysts always say. The XR _long_ term, will do very well and easily outsell the XS. Also, just an FYI, there are other threads in progress discussing similar threads to yours.
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Many older iPhones are still good enough. I think people a lot of people on an iPhone 6 or older are only just now starting to look for a new model... and even than the XR might be too expensive, which explains the (reportedly) high sales of iPhone 8 and 7 models.
The market is saturated. The XR price is, for many, still too high. Also, let's not forget Apple's likely still selling tens of millions of iPhones each quarter.
Sales aren't bad. They simply aren't as high compared to a few years ago, when many people were still getting their first real smartphone and (for upgraders: ) when new smartphone models were huge improvements over previous generations.
The market is saturated. The XR price is, for many, still too high. Also, let's not forget Apple's likely still selling tens of millions of iPhones each quarter.
Sales aren't bad. They simply aren't as high compared to a few years ago, when many people were still getting their first real smartphone and (for upgraders: ) when new smartphone models were huge improvements over previous generations.
1) It is just too big for many people (women). I wanted to get one for my gf but she can’t use it with just one hand. She can use the x just fine but the XR is just too big.
2) It’s the cheaper iPhone and iPhone buyers usually want the top of the line. Same with the 5C.
Also, Apple makes you feel that you didn’t buy the top of the line iPhone by making it look much much cheaper than the X/XS.
3) No Dual Camera on a 700+ phone
4) Competition getting closer and closer
5) Innovation has slowed down. The improvements are getting smaller with each new iPhone.
6) Maybe the most important: Apple isn’t as cool as it used to be. There has been so much bad press, including the battery debacle and discussion about outrageous pricing, that it may have hurt apples brand image.
7) no wow feature. Very solid phone all around but a little bit “boring”
2) It’s the cheaper iPhone and iPhone buyers usually want the top of the line. Same with the 5C.
Also, Apple makes you feel that you didn’t buy the top of the line iPhone by making it look much much cheaper than the X/XS.
3) No Dual Camera on a 700+ phone
4) Competition getting closer and closer
5) Innovation has slowed down. The improvements are getting smaller with each new iPhone.
6) Maybe the most important: Apple isn’t as cool as it used to be. There has been so much bad press, including the battery debacle and discussion about outrageous pricing, that it may have hurt apples brand image.
7) no wow feature. Very solid phone all around but a little bit “boring”
Not sure I agree that iPhone users usually want the top of the line. There’s quite a broad spectrum of people across the world who use iPhones and studying specs is not a huge factor for the vast majority of users I’d say. I also don’t think the XR feels cheaper than the XS aesthetically. They both feel premium enough in the hand in my experience. Shiny bands don’t necessarily shout ‘more expensive’ either. If you get a different feeling then I suppose it’s enough justification for your own needs but hey, an iPhone is an iPhone to most of us.
You see it Right away. One one camera at the back, matte finish instead of glossy, I personally wouldn’t mind it that much since I put on a case anyways but I know a lot of people that do.
My gf had some of her girlfriends over and they were talking about getting new phones and they were all like “ughhh you can’t get the XR it’s the cheap phone. Look how ugly the back is, look at how big it is...”
I feel like it’s kinda seen a a low status phone. I know it’s complete BS but many young people see these phones as status symbols and an iPhone XR doesn’t seem to cut it...
I don’t know anybody who buys a phone for status and I’d never look at it like that either. I haven’t noticed the XR be discussed away from Mac Rumours as the ‘cheap phone’. It’s an iPhone at the end of the day and cheap and Apple have never gone hand in hand.
To be honest, people who need a phone to demonstrate their status generally aren’t as wealthy as they’d like you to think. It’s a false persona born out of insecurity usually. I’ve never needed a phone to tell people I’ve got a good job lol.
I think the resolution of the display hyped up turning people off and the delayed release next to xs/max also
People who got x last year mostly don’t wanna fork over. People who skipped x and got xs/max definitely don’t wanna fork over. And people who upgraded x to Xs don’t either
By in large
I think $699 psychologically (since apple is really into marketing prices right now with trade in value) would’ve resonated much more than $749 even though its “just“ $50
And they should’ve dropped price on 8plus even more as well or even kept them same price to de incentivize people from getting older models brand new even further
People who got x last year mostly don’t wanna fork over. People who skipped x and got xs/max definitely don’t wanna fork over. And people who upgraded x to Xs don’t either
By in large
I think $699 psychologically (since apple is really into marketing prices right now with trade in value) would’ve resonated much more than $749 even though its “just“ $50
And they should’ve dropped price on 8plus even more as well or even kept them same price to de incentivize people from getting older models brand new even further
Terrible analogy because top of the line iPhones were always $600-$700.
Now they’re $1000-$1100 and ppl think it’s okay. Clowns
Ever since the X and the cost associated with it, IMO, people generally gave up on replacing and upgrading their phones. iPhone is just plain expensive as it has reached the $1000 threshold. And even with the XR being less expensive, again IMO, people generally just gave up and are sticking with their phones longer. People will replace their phones when they really need to; upgrading is no longer an indulgence.
iPhone is not a ferrari
top of the line iphones were always $600-$700. Now they just made a cheaper one, with worse specs than previous years then priced it at the 'normal' $600-$700.
In reality, they just bumped up the price of a $600 iPhone to $999.
In reality, apple added a bunch of tech to the phone and market priced the phone appropriately. Note 9 plus other phones are in the same ballpark.
Not defending the price, just defending the consumers freedom to vote with their wallets and feet.
Cooks states X became the best selling iPhone in the first quarter of 2018, but does not mean it is success. It just mean is outsells iPhone 8. It does not mean it sells well.
Smart Watch market is still flop. It is no where near the success as smartphone. Even though Apple Watch maybe the best seller, the whole category is still flop. I would not call Apple Watch success.
It's not a perception that iphones have gone up in price. I've never debated that point. What the next earnings call will look like is anybody's guess.
what 'bunch of tech'? Phones haven't changed much at all between 2016 and 2017.
No, Apple sets prices and other manufacturers follow accordingly. They know this, and you and I pay the price.
Apple calls the Apple Watch a success, so do I based on available information. Comparing the category to smartphones is not an apples to apples comparison (pun intended).
"Sells well" as you used it, is an ambiguous term. With apple no longer reporting units, it became much harder to parse the iphone revenue numbers.
Maybe apples guidance is really off the mark for the next earnings call.
OP, I think you forgot to mention the size factor. I recall seeing posts here and other places about people complaining that the original X was too big. Whether we like to admit it or not, there is a sizeable population out there who are longing for a small iPhone. For those people the XR is out of the question purely due to its dimensions. I am one of those, and even gave the XR a ten day trial - ended up returning it for a XS. If Apple made a XR that was smaller than the XS I would have been all over it.
The price didn't change much between 2016 and 2017 either. But bunch of tech could include the first generation neural engine.