iPhone X Production Faces Further Delays, Will Start in Mid-October

[SwissGuy93]

From an investor standpoint this entire rollout is a nightmare. First they release the 8 series with no WoW factor. Then they name the new flagship device with an ambiguous name. Is it the X? Is it the 10? Where is 9? I spoke to a sales rep from our service provider yesterday who insisted they don't have a 10.. But they are releasing an X soon... So, Apple has crippled their final quarter sales by offering a handset series that will not sell well due to stagnant innovation and anticipation of the X, and a flagship that can't be delivered until next quarter. There is a reason they always release in September, it's to boister final sales numbers for the year.
Apple is about to be unseated due to errors in marketing and mismanagement of the manufacturing stream.
Mark my words. Next year you will see a 9 in a final release of the 6-7-8 design and they will retire that line, and you will see an X+.

Yes, Apple is doomed. We get it.

Do you know why Apple is releasing two phones? Because no vendor out there could supply enough OLED panels for the whole line-up. The name can be discussed but it is for sure not a bad name.
As far as the scheduling goes, that is not great but I think it'll help Apple in terms of accepting the design. We are all used to it, because we have seen all the dummies etc. But most people haven't.
And the iPhone 8 will sell. And stagnant innovation? Name ONE company that innovated anything this or last year in terms of smartphones. Apple's internal iPhone hardware is still superior to anything out there.

And as an investor you should know not to belive everything you hear. That is rule number one.

 

[rjjacobson]

I just hope the SE sees a refresh in March/April. I’m done with any size/model but the SE. It has everything I want/need in a phone, it’s the smallest, it’s the most affordable. I used to be a latest and greatest guy. Lately, I’ve been discovering that all of my most used features (safari, mail, Apple Pay, photos) are great on all phones across he board

Very true the tech in the SE makes it a very nice choice for folks, all the iPhone line is great and provides places for all of us to join. We are getting to point that features are getting so much the same that we can enjoy whatever we have. I like the camera tech in the X but my 7plus 256 is still pretty nice ;-)

 

[macTW]

No touchID slow downs for you? I kept reading about introduced lag to it and have been scared to upgrade on the 7+, given that iOS 10 killed my 6+.

None really! In all honesty, I haven’t needed to type my passcode in yet, which I used to have to do a few times a day.

 

[agsystems]

I very much doubt this was avoidable considering the effort it takes to design a new phone. They might have done themselves a favor by announcing in October though.

thank you...I read everyone saying what's the problem - OLED is being around for a long time - this not the same OLED setup everyone is using, Apple is looking for p3/wide color, 3d touch, true tone setup at the highest quality that it is cut to match the dimensions of this phone - this is not some off the shelf part you can get anywhere.

The question is should Apple waited another year to bring this model to market but I don't think that's an option as they are basically the only major vendor not selling bezel less phones.

 

[smulji]

Silly comment. It doesn't work that way. You can't just move all production over to the X like a snap of your finger. Apple simply can't even get enough OLED screens to fill out the demand for the X

Listen the iPhone 8 was released to actually help with the iPhone X's supply issues.

"Listen the iPhone 8 was released to actually help with the iPhone X's supply issues."

Agreed.

 

[SwissGuy93]

I'm very curious to see how this plays out. If shipping gets moved to January for folks that pre-order as soon as they go live or even into early FEB..... it will be interesting to see how many wait that long, or at that point, simply wait for next September. Not sure who thought the biggest IPHONE launch ever in terms of countries that can pre-order on the same day mixed with the shortest supply ever for the launch was a good idea.

How do you know if it is the shortest supply ever? Just because some random analyst, who is not even KGI, predicted something that even CONTRADICTS what KGI said?

Can we please all get a bit more critical with stuff like that? Apple will not, and I repeat not, have the biggest launch ever to then have the first pre-order customers wait until january. Imagine if the first pre-orders would be january. That would mean that orders placed 48 hours later would be in let's say Feburary, March. And when you order in mid-November you get it in April / May? Oh come on folks, let's think for a minute. That is simply not going to happen. Imagine the delivery dates of all carriers in those 55 countries. Carriers, in Europe at least, always have a worse supply than Apple has. That would mean that people ordering the phone together with a plan would look at a feburary, march delivery date. That is just not going to happen.

 

[nviz22]

Isn't it just better to wait a year for the iPhone X price to drop or for Apple to release multiple OLED devices so there could be a 4", 4.7", and 6" variant? The jump to 5.8" will be huge for a lot of people using 4" and 4.7" devices over the last several years.

 

[MacBergin]

Looks like i'll be up at 3:00am trying to order a couple of X's and will be frustrated and angry...preparing myself to not have the X until 2018

 

[Pilgrim1099]

From an investor standpoint this entire rollout is a nightmare. First they release the 8 series with no WoW factor. Then they name the new flagship device with an ambiguous name. Is it the X? Is it the 10? Where is 9? I spoke to a sales rep from our service provider yesterday who insisted they don't have a 10.. But they are releasing an X soon... So, Apple has crippled their final quarter sales by offering a handset series that will not sell well due to stagnant innovation and anticipation of the X, and a flagship that can't be delivered until next quarter. There is a reason they always release in September, it's to boister final sales numbers for the year.
Apple is about to be unseated due to errors in marketing and mismanagement of the manufacturing stream.
Mark my words. Next year you will see a 9 in a final release of the 6-7-8 design and they will retire that line, and you will see an X+.

That's what I suspect, but most likely they will retire the 6 and 7 but go with 8s and X ( either an 11 or labeled as 2018 iPhone ), and keep the SE ( with 7 specs which is likely ). The 8 is likely the last in the lineup and by 2018 in the Fall, the 2018-2027 Face ID models will be flagship and start at $999 every year while older ones will drop in price until the phase out. They can't back out, do a 9 and then 10 again. Makes no sense. I think the problem lies NOT in just marketing and mismanagement of manufacturing but also the decisions made by the execs such as Cook.

 

[tripleh3lix]

Isn't it just better to wait a year for the iPhone X price to drop or for Apple to release multiple OLED devices so there could be a 4", 4.7", and 6" variant? The jump to 5.8" will be huge for a lot of people using 4" and 4.7" devices over the last several years.

It would be. That’s why I’m upgrading to the 8 plus... so I can upgrade next September or October. And still have 85 percent of the tech in the phone. Plus a better battery and a slightly smoother experience cause of the resolution different. The specs internally are the same people

People truly are obsessed with the looks of this phone, I get it. I do. But an 8 Plus is not a “used” 7 plus. As one member put it here. That A11 is a beast.

 

[slippery-pete]

How do you know if it is the shortest supply ever? Just because some random analyst, who is not even KGI, predicted something that even CONTRADICTS what KGI said?

Can we please all get a bit more critical with stuff like that? Apple will not, and I repeat not, have the biggest launch ever to then have the first pre-order customers wait until january. Imagine if the first pre-orders would be january. That would mean that orders placed 48 hours later would be in let's say Feburary, March. And when you order in mid-November you get it in April / May? Oh come on folks, let's think for a minute. That is simply not going to happen. Imagine the delivery dates of all carriers in those 55 countries. Carriers, in Europe at least, always have a worse supply than Apple has. That would mean that people ordering the phone together with a plan would look at a feburary, march delivery date. That is just not going to happen.

This! Well said

 

[iteklog]

Uhgg every year i have been able to pre order on launch day without issues and was able to get it on launch day, but looks like this year its gonna be a challenge.

 

[nviz22]

It would be. That’s why I’m upgrading to the 8 plus... so I can upgrade next September or October. And still have 85 percent of the tech in the phone. Plus a better battery and a slightly smoother experience cause of the resolution different. The specs internally are the same people

People truly are obsessed with the looks of this phone, I get it. I do. But an 8 Plus is not a “used” 7 plus. As one member put it here. That A11 is a beast.

It borrows the 7+ design sadly. If they could've changed the ergonomic profile and aesthetic with the 8+, it would've been better. I guess glass at the back does help because of wireless charging. If I were buying a current gen iPhone, I would buy the 8+. If I were holding onto the 7+, I would get a 4.7-5.5" OLED model, if not then the iPhone X.

 

[rjjacobson]

This article is absolute bull****
Production started weeks ago.
Several million units are already packaged.
Anyone who works in high volume manufacturing knows this is hysteria.
Phone will be freely available for the holiday season.

Excactly, if they were at this level of production issues it would indeed be a disaster for Apple. I suspect they have a few million already and they need to have enough for holiday season. Sure some of us might not get it on November 3, but most should have an X before years end I am guessing. Love the hysteria at this time of year and rumors of disaster, maybe Samsung wants more sales LOL

 

[brianvictor7]

thank you...I read everyone saying what's the problem - OLED is being around for a long time - this not same OLED setup everyone is using, Apple is looking for p3/wide color, 3d touch, true tone setup at the highest quality that it is cut to match the dimensions of this phone - this is not some off the shelf part you can get anywhere.

The question is should Apple waited another year to bring this model to market but I don't think that's an option as they are basically the only major vendor not selling bezel less phones.

Yes, it was mentioned in the Keynote that the OLEDs they needed to meet their true tone standards took some development. We've read rumors for over a year now that there were concerns over obtaining enough volume on the display components. This whole iPhone X design process has likely been fraught with delays over the OLED.

As for bezeless phones, I honestly don't pay much attention to non-Apple products, but I've see the Android one that wraps over the sides of phone. I thought that a bit odd since it distorts your pictures/vids. This is my current beef with the X. I don't care for the rounded corners and notch. Fortunately, Apple offered the 8+ with a perfect rectangle, which I'm happy to say is scheduled to arrive tomorrow.

 

[rjjacobson]

The majority of any new iPhone will ship in the year after launch because it's the bigger time frame ;P No jokes aside, i think we should not get too worried about some analyst's unproven statement. The only one's who know how many phones are being produced are the Foxconn and Apple executives. And neither of them are having official meetings with an analyst discussing the production start of the iPhone X. The other suppliers will not know, because they deliver in bulk. I take it all with a grain of salt. And as other on here already said; Apple has been working for 3 years on this phone. The Operations team was for sure also included. The phone will, as always, be constrained but I doubt it being more than 4-6 weeks.

Yes I agree a more reasonable assesment

 

[Tunster]

Sure is. Also at a starting price of £1,000.00 should they move to a two year cycle? After all, imagine you've just paid that amount of money, only to receive the phone in 2018, the same year the S model comes out. Whats the point?

Many laptops/notebooks are that price or less and you would never consider changing them every year.

Same with any of the previous gen of the phone. They never made the S version much better (just smaller CPU/GPU enhancements along with a few big ticket items in iOS). It's starting to get to the point where even you can get to away with skipping 3 generations now. Maybe the X will take a longer update leap being a super-premium phone. And that the 6/7/8 line will become cheaper as they want to keep up with competition and make the iPhone still affordable.

I honestly think Apple might surprise us with a smaller iPX next year to attract the iPSE users. And anyone who loves the smaller form factor phones.

 

[Jjayf]

Yes, Apple is doomed. We get it.

Do you know why Apple is releasing two phones? Because no vendor out there could supply enough OLED panels for the whole line-up. The name can be discussed but it is for sure not a bad name.
As far as the scheduling goes, that is not great but I think it'll help Apple in terms of accepting the design. We are all used to it, because we have seen all the dummies etc. But most people haven't.
And the iPhone 8 will sell. And stagnant innovation? Name ONE company that innovated anything this or last year in terms of smartphones. Apple's internal iPhone hardware is still superior to anything out there.

And as an investor you should know not to belive everything you hear. That is rule number one.

Believe me, not only do I accept the design of the X... I embrace it. It is everything I've been waiting on for a number of years now. Search these threads all you want, you will not find a single negative word from me on the new design.

Tim Cook is a professional and a very highly paid leader of arguably the most valuable company in the world. While I have experience is design and marketing, I am in no way even close to the league of he or his council, however, even I can see the glaring mistakes with this release. I am heavily invested in Apple, both monetarily in stocks, and in lifestyle with products, I want them, I need them, to continue to succeed. I would not expect this caliber of missteps from Apple. Something is amiss.

Innovation from the tech sector? Look no further than Samgsung. They were able to turn the most disasterous (and one of the most expensive) PR nightmares into one of the biggest wins since the original iPhone. Through innovation and marketing they were able to be first to the table with the features we have all been asking for for years. Now it gives the appearance that Apple is playing catchup and being forced to market with a product that is not fully ready or well timed. In a perfect world iPhone X would have been of it's own release and the Retina display would have been retired. In utopia, Apple would be building their own oled displays. But then again Apple has always been successful at outsourcing components, and gets in trouble when they bring hardware manufacture in house. (Sapphire glass comes to mind).

 

[rjjacobson]

Well now we have our doom and gloom rumor, along with constraints rumors, and such -- always happens. I suspect the truth is somewhere in between. Apple probably has a lot more produced than these rumors all suggests. Sure there will be constraints on order day, but like several posted I am guessing delays for us who want the X will only be a few weeks and those who want to try the new X tech will have one before years end.

If I am wrong and my apple upgrade does not snag me an X then I guess I just have to suffer and enjoy my 7Plus 256 for another year -- a terrible fate LOL

 

[PalindromeB0B]

In other words, if I miss preordering in the first minute it's open, I should just wait for the iPhone Xs since both models will likely deliver around the same time.

 

[AppleMad98004]

Let the online flipping begin. I predict months long waits and $3,000 dollar ebay sales.

 

[rpat701]

Tim Cook, Operations Expert.

Operations vs pulling part supply out of thin air are two different things.

 

[AdonisSMU]

Apple is a notch above the rest.

 

[steelo3232]

Everyone says if the volume is so low it will be a disaster for Apple.... does anyone remember the Air Pod release? Was that not a debacle? It was done horridly. The fact it was an accessory and not a daily driver item like a phone is probably why it was "accepted" or at least tolerated. I think many on here are giving Apple too much credit based on their product roll outs that this won't be a disaster of epic proportions. I'd be very surprised if more than half of pre-order sales were fulfilled in 17. This story gives the impression 5% will get phones that pre-order as soon as they go open. Many on here are saying as long as you pre-order when they go live it will be at most a few weeks. I'm going middle of the road. 50% will get them within 4-6 weeks, the other 50% won't until the ball drops in Time Square. Time will tell, but let us not give Apple a pass as they have botched more roll outs than those in which they have succeeded in my opinion.

 

[Woodcrest64]

If the delay is so bad that people can't it until March or April of next year they maybe tempted to wait for the next iPhone.