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

[gagaliya]

I was on iPhone 11 pro max so day 1 upgrade for me and they got me to upgrade to 512gb version too since I was at 230gb used on the old phone, with the higher mp photos figured better play safe than sorry since I will be keeping this phone for at least 4+ years before upgrading again.

 

[JohnC1959]

The non pro versions don't get skimped on as much as most years so people feel they can save some money.

 

[klasma]

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

A driving factor has got to be that, with the 16s and 16 Pros, the differences between the two lines are less obvious than they were in preceding generations. Always-on, a slightly better CPU, a somewhat better camera (but regular models also have the biggest camera innovation, the button), faster refresh rates, slightly more premium build, slight increase in battery life: for many, these fall into the nice-to-have category they can live without.

Kuo also wrote that the higher 16 sales don’t compensate for the lower 16 Pro sales, which means it’s not just a shift from Pro to non-Pro.

 

[JohnC1959]

Massive tech enthusiast with a disposable income begging to be spent on a shiny new iPhone... and I’m also still keeping my 14 Pro. Apple at least used to hide the fact that they were dripfeeding a little better. I mean, every company does it, you can’t just release the greatest ultimate phone ever because you’ll cannibalize all future sales. But still, these hardware changes are a joke. They too obviously started to withhold features far after they’re ready, like RAM or the 48MP telephoto.

Make sense. After all you can still get something ELSE that's shiny and new. I'm mostly upgrading my 13s to get the satellite SOS that came on the 14 but the other upgrades are nice to have along for the ride. I used to update every year or two but now every three years seems about right and I can always find other shiny things or great trips to spend extra cash on.

 

[timborama]

Don’t believe it, we will sell millions of 16 Pros

Who’s “we”?

 

[DelayedGratificationGene]

Kuo really has been on a mission this past year or two to bring down Apple. Kind of strange reporting. Anyhow he doesn’t have access to India supply chains. So he’s basically blind predicting.

 

[FredTX92]

My main reason to upgrade is the 15 Pro has a faulty Bluetooth modem that Apple has been promising to fix since launch. They sent me a replacement with the same issue and then Support said iOS 18 would fix it. It has not.

 

[dannyyankou]

Lots of people pointed out that if the main selling point was Apple Intelligence, and 99% of those features are available on last year’s iPhone, why would you upgrade? I don’t know how Apple didn’t see this coming.

 

[fwmireault]

Isn’t it a little odd to compare demand for the 16 to that of the 15, given the 15 is only a year in? Surely the number of folks who upgrade annually is significantly less than the number who upgrade biannually or every three years?

I don’t get your point, sales for a new device are irrespective of which device people owned previously. Kuo is not talking about the number of people who upgraded from the 15 to the 16, he is talking about anyone who upgraded this year

 

[djc6]

I'll buy if word ever comes out this will be the last Pro iPhone with an Qualcomm modem.

 

[klasma]

Who’s “we”?

It’s Tim undercover.

 

[TechnoMonk]

I seriously doubt that even half the people who buy the Pro or any other iPhone 16 know what Apple Intelligence does, nor do they care ...

Every or most of the year analysts put out demand is low reports with caveats. This is the way out, sales picked up as Apple intelligence is closer to release. It’s like the boy who cried wolf when Apple releases the quarterly numbers. It will be interesting to look at actual numbers on iPhone revenue and see. If the revenue goes down.

 

[hoodlum90]

I am sure also that using the same A18 chip (A18 pro just has 6 vs 5 GPU cores ... mostly irrelevant) in the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro is also doing no favors to the Pro sales.

Pro buyers are getting it for the screen (OLED, Promotion, and to a lesser extent "always on") and the telephoto camera. But those features have been present in various incarnations for years (2017 OLED, 2021 Promotion, 2022 "always on" and 5x telephoto on Pro Max)

Yes, the jump from a16 to a18 along with the doubling of memory has limited the Pro’s appeal. This was one benefit from Apple needing to roll out AI to all devices.

I am surprised that the regular PRO sales have dropped the greatest by 27%. I thought the added 5x zoom would have captured some upgraders.

 

[joshwithachance]

We don’t need an analyst to tell us this. We can see by the fact that no model is back ordered further than 2 weeks…

 

[TechnoMonk]

Yes, the jump from a16 to a18 along with the doubling of memory has limited the Pro’s appeal. This was one benefit from Apple needing to roll out AI to all devices.

I am surprised that the regular PRO sales have dropped the greatest by 27%. I thought the added 5x zoom would have captured some upgraders.

These are not actual sales it’s a survey.

 

[klasma]

I am surprised that the regular PRO sales have dropped the greatest by 27%. I thought the added 5x zoom would have captured some upgraders.

It also would seem that people aren’t especially keen on the larger screen.

 

[Black Tiger]

I find it difficult to justify buying a phone at these prices. Not sure what I’m going to do once my 14 pro max is due for an upgrade. Most people are buying these on monthly instalments now. I hate that everything we own now has some sort of monthly payment or subscription. Done with it.

 

[ssledoux]

I can’t justify upgrading my 15 pro max, but I would honestly love to go to a regular 16. I don’t know if I’d enjoy going smaller after having a pro max, but every time I hold my grandkids’ SE 3s I miss a smaller, lighter phone!

Now that they have macro photography on the regular phone, I don’t think there will be anything holding me back from leaving the pro line behind next time I upgrade.

 

[damnhandy]

My 13 Pro Max is still running just fine. I do plan on upgrading, but not until the end of the year. I have no need to pre-order. Phones are now boring, they're like a winter coat that simply don't need to to be replaced every year unless you have money to burn.

 

[TechnoMonk]

This is Kuo last year. Grumman also said iPhone revenue will fall with 15 sales weak.
They can just change the number of the model and put out a similar report every year.

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[Supercyborgninja]

3 stores are back ordered in my area.

Don’t upgrade if you don’t need to. Not going to be mad that people aren’t wasting money and it will hopefully send a loud boom towards corporations to stop allowing the Congo to have dehumanizing labor build our phones.

Love it, hold on to your money!

 

[Apple_Robert]

Just for fun guys, go see a few videos on youtube of the new Huawei ultimate design phone.

I have no use for a copycat phone with a substandard and fractured OS.

 

[StoneJack]

I dont know who designed and made overall concept of iphone 16 but it is shockingly dull and boring stopgap release without even a slight attempt to genuinely upgrade and bring something new

 

[StoneJack]

I have no use for a copycat phone with a substandard and fractured OS.

Have u used harmony os?

 

[1369281]

Apple: I will literally buy ANY phone you make if it does not use PWM (pulse-width modulation) for the display.

iPhone 16 Pro uses PWM, so I won't be buying it, and it doesn't offer much even over an iPhone 14 Pro.