iPhone 8 strategy...

[projectfx]

so I don't entirely get the 8 vs X strategy, and I am kind of wondering what is the line of thinking now given the results. Was this a **** up?

If you are apple and you just released an iPhone with the lowest demand in years, but you also created this havoc for your next launch a month or two away...is that part of the plan? Are they hoping that the launch of the 8 dilutes the market by October 27th? Are they giving people who don't want the top of line apple tech a cheaper option?

Given the track record hard for me to believe they didn't expect the majority of the iPhone community to hold out for the bigger and better thing.

 

[Droidbricker]

so I don't entirely get the 8 vs X strategy, and I am kind of wondering what is the line of thinking now given the results. Was this a **** up?

If you are apple and you just released an iPhone with the lowest demand in years, but you also created this havoc for your next launch a month or two away...is that part of the plan? Are they hoping that the launch of the 8 dilutes the market by October 27th? Are they giving people who don't want the top of line apple tech a cheaper option?

Given the track record hard for me to believe they didn't expect the majority of the iPhone community to hold out for the bigger and better thing.

Imo they had planned on only releasing the 8. When they saw the competition releasing edge to edge designs they knew they had some catching up to do and rushed the X. The delayed release was so Apple could gauge whether customers would accept the new design before they produced a lot of them. If it was a flop, they wouldn’t be sitting on a ton of product that nobody wanted.

 

[bufffilm]

Please don't create another thread asking why Apple did what they did.

And we don't know what the ipX will do (in sales), so it's too early to judge.

I just know that the 2017 iphones are a bust for me.

 

[stabile007]

To me its pretty easy to get: the iPhone 8 is for the people who go into a store to buy a new phone throughout the year and want a "new" phone but maybe not that $1000+ phone. This is probably what makes up a bulk of Apple's sales each quarter. The hardcore users are waiting for the X and will likely buy those and help push the sales higher for the first two quarters. Now with phones across the entire pricing spectrum it will be interesting to see how that plays out over the year but I suspect the most we will get from Apple on specific model sales is "The sales have met/exceeded our expectations".

 

[projectfx]

Please don't create another thread asking why Apple did what they did.

And we don't know what the ipX will do (in sales), so it's too early to judge.

I just know that the 2017 iphones are a bust for me.

I think the sales for the iPhone X are pretty clear based on lack of demand for the 8 and 8+

 

[MacDevil7334]

Everything about this seems to point to a desperate rush to get the iPhone X to market and not quite getting there. Based on the rumors, I am almost sure Apple’s original plan was to release the X at the same time as the 8 with Touch ID embedded under the screen to compliment Face ID. When that proved so technically difficult that it jeopardized the launch of the phone, Touch ID was removed (probably around early summer). But Apple’s design hit more delays in production and the release date had to be pushed back.

I agree with others that the 8 is for people who need a new iPhone but don’t particularly care about specs (my fiancée is one of these). The 8 gives these people modern internals without a $1000+ price tag. But I don’t think the delay on the X was intentional. I’m sure if Apple had enough supply to release it alongside the 8 on Friday, it would have.

 

[Dave245]

This is my personal theory, I think Apple knows that the iPhone X will do better in sales, it then gives them a reason next year to remove the "old" style devices from the lineup and continue with the X style design, adding a X Plus, that way there are 2 models i.e. the iPhone X and the iPhone X Plus, the X is a more premium model that looks into the future (Apple even said this themselves at the keynote) it is not a one off model like some people have been suggesting.

 

[aneftp]

Everything about this seems to point to a desperate rush to get the iPhone X to market and not quite getting there. Based on the rumors, I am almost sure Apple’s original plan was to release the X at the same time as the 8 with Touch ID embedded under the screen to compliment Face ID. When that proved so technically difficult that it jeopardized the launch of the phone, Touch ID was removed (probably around early summer). But Apple’s design hit more delays in production and the release date had to be pushed back.

I agree with others that the 8 is for people who need a new iPhone but don’t particularly care about specs (my fiancée is one of these). The 8 gives these people modern internals without a $1000+ price tag. But I don’t think the delay on the X was intentional. I’m sure if Apple had enough supply to release it alongside the 8 on Friday, it would have.

[doublepost=1506171767][/doublepost]I don’t buy that argument about people who don’t care about specs buying a 2017 iphone 8 vs the X.

The iPhone 8 and X have exact same processor And 8 plus also has the same exact camera in addition to the same exact ram and processor.

If people didn’t care about specs in 2017 they would buy the most “budget” 2year old iPhone 6S which is Apple budget model.

People trying to say the 8 is like the 5C. Ridiculous analogy since the 5c was just a rehash one year old iPhone 5 model with same processor and ram and camera.

 

[deuxani]

I still think the iPhone 8 is a pretty smart move. All providers are posting ads for just the new iPhone 8, the X is not mentioned. Most people don't know about the iPhone X so all they see is the new iPhone 8 and buy that if they need a new phone. The people who actually order at Apple.com or go stand in line in front of the Apple Store on launch day are the enthusiasts like us that live on forums. And for us this year is all about the X. So it wouldn't surprise me if the 8 was only doing a little bit worse than the 7.

The X will be so limited that Apple doesn't care that people buy the 8 instead because it will be impossible to meet the X demand. And then there are people who actually prefer the 8 over the X for many reasons.

It's smart, using this design for the 4th year so no research cost is lost there. Making the price even higher. I hate their approach, but it's smart.

I am almost sure Apple’s original plan was to release the X at the same time as the 8 with Touch ID embedded under the screen to compliment Face ID. When that proved so technically difficult that it jeopardized the launch of the phone, Touch ID was removed (probably around early summer). But Apple’s design hit more delays in production and the release date had to be pushed back.

You can't possibly believe that. A company like Apple that has to mass produce in the dozens of millions can't just decide something like that sooo late in the process. According to many insiders Apple decided to go all-in with FaceID almost a year ago. TouchID was out of the picture for that long because they know it was never going to work and FaceID was impressive early on.

 

[aneftp]

My play may be to wait for $250-300 Costco or Sam's gift card promo for jphone 8 plus around Thanksgiving time. I will get the 64gb $799 model. Which will effectively make the cost basis of the iPhone 8 plus like $499 or $549 after adjusting for gift cards.

Come 2018 when. The kinks are worked out of the iPhone x. I can easily resell the iPhone 8 plus for $450 (it will be a one year old model). Considering I just sold my iPhone 6s plus 64gb 2 year old model for $380. Selling one year old iPhone 8 plus in 2018 for $450 would be easy.

That's how u gotta play the installments plans. I paid it off early anyways to be re eligible for another installments deal.

 

[Jjayf]

Imo they had planned on only releasing the 8. When they saw the competition releasing edge to edge designs they knew they had some catching up to do and rushed the X. The delayed release was so Apple could gauge whether customers would accept the new design before they produced a lot of them. If it was a flop, they wouldn’t be sitting on a ton of product that nobody wanted.

This
[doublepost=1506174771][/doublepost]

This is my personal theory, I think Apple knows that the iPhone X will do better in sales, it then gives them a reason next year to remove the "old" style devices from the lineup and continue with the X style design, adding a X Plus, that way there are 2 models i.e. the iPhone X and the iPhone X Plus, the X is a more premium model that looks into the future (Apple even said this themselves at the keynote) it is not a one off model like some people have been suggesting.

This also

 

[Adelphos33]

Gruber is on the money here:

https://daringfireball.net/2017/07/speculation_on_new_iphone_pricing

For years, there was only one “new” iPhone. Apple’s business is too big for that currently. They want people to be happy with a variety of phones over a variety of price points.

 

[Ayemerica]

I don't think anyone should feel bad for buying the 8. I'll pick the "x" up next year.

 

[eyedoc2020]

Imo they had planned on only releasing the 8. When they saw the competition releasing edge to edge designs they knew they had some catching up to do and rushed the X. The delayed release was so Apple could gauge whether customers would accept the new design before they produced a lot of them. If it was a flop, they wouldn’t be sitting on a ton of product that nobody wanted.

This is exactly what I was thinking watching the release come out.

 

[eyedoc2020]

Everything about this seems to point to a desperate rush to get the iPhone X to market and not quite getting there. Based on the rumors, I am almost sure Apple’s original plan was to release the X at the same time as the 8 with Touch ID embedded under the screen to compliment Face ID. When that proved so technically difficult that it jeopardized the launch of the phone, Touch ID was removed (probably around early summer). But Apple’s design hit more delays in production and the release date had to be pushed back.


I agree with others that the 8 is for people who need a new iPhone but don’t particularly care about specs (my fiancée is one of these). The 8 gives these people modern internals without a $1000+ price tag. But I don’t think the delay on the X was intentional. I’m sure if Apple had enough supply to release it alongside the 8 on Friday, it would have.

I care about specs. The specs on the 8plus and X are identical. I could care less about Face ID (actually prefer Touch ID) and don’t care about Animoji). Why spend 200+ dollars more for an OLED display that doesn’t touch the brightness and resolution of the Note 8?

iPhone 8 plus for me until Apple gets their **** together.

 

[DavidMc]

Even as soon as the rumors started flowing about two different models I already knew this year I would stick with what ever device replaced the 7 plus directly. The X is a great looking device and gets iPhone close to par with Samsung and the like in term of hardware. The notch is not a big deal to me and I would have no issue with it. Having had a Galaxy S3, Note 3, and Note 4 over the years the move to OLED would be welcome in my book.

With that said, the 8 plus so far is a great device. For once Apple did not nueter a device to badly from one line to the next. Sure OIS in both cameras would be great and I would have loved to see Apple but a standard OLED panel in the 8 and 8 plus. But honestly the true tone LED display is quite an upgrade over the 6s plus LCD that I was using up till last night. Touch ID vs Face ID makes no difference to me but the non mechanical button is great on the 8 plus especially since Apple got rid of the 3D touch multi task shortcut which I used all the time.

Very happy with my upgrade to a 8 plus 256gb. I would of rather seen a 128gb model with a slightly cheaper price as my needs were going beyond the 64gb of the 6s plus but not close to needing a 256gb. Sure i am only 50 dollars off from the 64gb X and I could of possibly made that work, but I will sit back and see how this new designed device fares this year and maybe do an early upgrade with AT&T next year for the new model of X. I for one am happy Apple offered these devices this year for those who do not want to wait out what will most likely be a crazy time frame to receive an X model.

 

[AppleZombie]

It's pretty simple. The iPhone X is nothing new to the smartphone world except pooping emoji's. The notch is disgusting, the price is disgusting for 64 gb and wait period will be at least 4 weeks from release date.

So Apple put out a phone in an old school body with pretty much the same internals as X and has it as a backup when people can't the X in Oct, Nov Dec, Jan or Feb. Basically they want to stop people from going over to Samsung.

And then what everyone keeps forgetting is, there are a lot of iPhone 5s and 6 owners who have not upgraded in 3 years and frankly don't care about Face ID, or almost an edge to edge phone.

 

[HarryWild]

The regular size 4.7" has account for 65% of the purchases and the mountain of profit for Apple. Still, the plus model cost $100 more then the regular size, has a telephoto camera as a second camera, has higher screen resolution and all the goodies like more RAM, better camera technology but account for 15% of the iPhone purchases and has a much narrower profit margin. The new X is Apple's move to OLED display and edgeless iPhone! Apple realized that they cannot keep doing the same 2011 screen LED display technology standard that in today's world that Android phones costing $120 have a true 1080p screen resolution, so the X is going to be release to show Apple's Super Retina display and edgeless high tech iPhone! Profit margin is rumor to be similar to the plus however since the OLED screen cost Apple a whooping $125.

 

[Juan007]

iPhone 8 is the best phone that you can currently buy. It will appeal to people who want the best phone right now, or people who don't want to spend $1000+ on a phone.

Apple wants to sell a phone to everyone. A futuristic phone 5 years ahead of its time to people willing to pay most, the best phone on the market with modern features to people willing to pay more, 1-2 generation old phone (which is still better than the latest and greatest from the competition) to those willing to pay less, and 3-4 gen old phone to those willing to pay almost nothing. A good strategy, a phone for everyone.

 

[dallas112678]

so I don't entirely get the 8 vs X strategy, and I am kind of wondering what is the line of thinking now given the results. Was this a **** up?

If you are apple and you just released an iPhone with the lowest demand in years, but you also created this havoc for your next launch a month or two away...is that part of the plan? Are they hoping that the launch of the 8 dilutes the market by October 27th? Are they giving people who don't want the top of line apple tech a cheaper option?

Given the track record hard for me to believe they didn't expect the majority of the iPhone community to hold out for the bigger and better thing.

I think they released it because they know they can't make enough of the X as shown by all of the delays. There's always the possibility that they still wanted to offer a "new" device that was a little bit less expensive for those not willing to pay laptop prices for a phone.

 

[pat500000]

I think they released it because they know they can't make enough of the X as shown by all of the delays. There's always the possibility that they still wanted to offer a "new" device that was a little bit less expensive for those not willing to pay laptop prices for a phone.

I'm thinking the same...to off load the demands for x due to the supply issue.

 

[I7guy]

I think the sales for the iPhone X are pretty clear based on lack of demand for the 8 and 8+

You don’t know there is a lack of demand because you don’t know the supply chain nor the online ordering.

 

[44267547]

I don't think anyone should feel bad for buying the 8. I'll pick the "x" up next year.

The iPhone 8 is still a great upgrade for those coming from an older model iPhone under the 7. It Still has plenty to offer, powerful and I still very much prefer the design with the current iPhone, even though I do think it's been widely used for four years now.

Those who are migrating to the iPhone X are simply wanting the OLED display and wanting to experiment with a Face ID. But you do receive the smaller form factor as well. But the internal specifications are very similar between both the 8 and X.

 

[michael9891]

Imo they had planned on only releasing the 8. When they saw the competition releasing edge to edge designs they knew they had some catching up to do and rushed the X. The delayed release was so Apple could gauge whether customers would accept the new design before they produced a lot of them. If it was a flop, they wouldn’t be sitting on a ton of product that nobody wanted.

Absolute rubbish. There's been talk as far back as March 2016 (probably earlier) of Apple working on an OLED model with no home button & slim bezels to be released in 2017.

Mobile phone launches are planned wayyyyyy in advance. You're suggesting they'd announce the X and then wait a week or so to decide how many they're going to make based on public opinion? lmao

 

[joeblow7777]

Even if the 8/8+ launch seems lackluster by Apple standards, it's probably still outselling any other phone on the market. Then, in 6 weeks, another big iPhone launch. A lot of people online think like fanboys, where everything Apple does has to be the biggest and best to be considered a success. In a boxing match, not every punch you throw has to be a haymaker. It's good to land jabs too.