Kuo: iPhone 12 Pro Demand Higher Than Expected

[ugahairydawgs]

I originally was torn between the pro max and the mini - the mini for the size and how it was quite an upgrade over my XR, but I really like the pro camera features. However, I ended up compromising and going for the 12 pro. I’m just starting on iPhone photography, but the Max Pro is just too big a phone. I love the size of the XR.

For someone in your shoes (which is where I was when the announcement first happened) I just don't get where the 12 Pro has a place. If you want the best camera you want the 12 Pro Max. If you want the most portable device you want the 12 Mini. If you want a good iPhone but don't care a ton about the camera and either don't want or care about the smaller size then you want the 12.

The 12 Pro seems to be the phone where all you get are the tradeoffs at a higher price. I legitimately don't get the draw of it.

 

[ghanwani]

But you can't even order the Mini yet. How will we know consumer demand until people actually have an opportunity to buy it? Apple may make an initial guess at a demand to start production and establish some inventory - which is what Kuo's data actually means - but until we see what people want, nobody really knows.

I truly hope everyone is wrong and the (relative) demand for the Mini is through the roof so that Apple keeps building them.

 

[IG88]

It's the same story every year

I've never seen an iPhone launch whose demand was lower than expected

It's easy to achieve that when you make the "expected" demand artificially low.

 

[xpxp2002]

For someone in your shoes (which is where I was when the announcement first happened) I just don't get where the 12 Pro has a place. If you want the best camera you want the 12 Pro Max. If you want the most portable device you want the 12 Mini. If you want a good iPhone but don't care a ton about the camera and either don't want or care about the smaller size then you want the 12.

The 12 Pro seems to be the phone where all you get are the tradeoffs at a higher price. I legitimately don't get the draw of it.

It's funny, I agree with your assessments about the different models, but I don't come to the same conclusion. The way I see it, the iPhone 12 has no place in the lineup that isn't already fulfilled by a better option.

The way I see it is that those who want the 5.4" model will compromise on the camera and other capabilities to have the portable and easy-to-use one-handed size.

Those who are more compelled by the telephoto lens, Dolby Vision capabilities, or extra RAM will jump straight to the 12 Pro or 12 Pro Max. To me, and I'm sure many others, the 12 Pro Max is simply too large to be a viable option for a phone, period. At 6.7", I don't even see it as a mobile phone. So if you really want good cameras, but don't want to get stuck lugging around a 6.7" phablet all the time, the 6.1" 12 Pro is a pretty good compromise.

With all that considered, I can't really see a scenario where the 6.1" 12 makes sense. For an extra $1-2/month over the regular 6.1" 12, you can have the 12 Pro with better hardware and built with nicer materials. Or for even less than the 6.1" 12, you can have a nice, pocketable phone in the mini.

 

[GermanSuplex]

agreed...who wants an ipad mini mini in their pocket? I had the big 7 and from there I never went back (have an iphone XS now). I think the mini will be amazing and will be ordering 2x at 5am on 11/6. I figure the mini now and moving forward will beat out the pro from 2 years earlier. So mini 2020 camera > iphone XS 2018 camera and therefore, mini 2021 > iphone 11 pro camera. This is fine by me as I'm just snapping pix of my kids... Dolby vision 60 fps video needed? I'm good with 30 fps...

sidenote: 128gb seems cramped now, must go 256gb

The only thing that stopped me from getting the mini was that I'm an impatient bastard. If the mini was available for pre-order right now, I probably would have pulled the trigger on it.

 

[TechLord]

Not surprised, if you need 128gb 120-150 more for the pro isn't a bad deal. The pro actually received a price cut in the UK; last year the 11 pro 64gb was 1049, this year 12 pro 129gb 999. Somehow I doubt it'll stay at 999 if it receives 120hz next year.

 

[sideshowuniqueuser]

kinda obvious when you jack up the price for 12 by 100 bucks, after matching the storage difference is only 120-150 depending on carrier.

Yep, and cut the price of the pro.

 

[Lakersfan74]

I ordered the Blue 12 but now want the Pro Graphite. My Apple Card wanted verification for the amount and I declined the transaction. My sister will call the carrier tomorrow to order the Pro. I will wait until December if I have to. Did not know it was only a $120 difference. Worth it to me.

 

[macribas]

Not at all sure I agree with you there!

I have a 16GB iPhone 6s. It struggles. Especially come IOS update time. But it does still work.

64GB would have seemed like Elysian fields. There have been a lot of posts saying that few really need more than 64GB. (Though there are certainly some people who have requirements that are much greater.) What is coming that will need double that?

At the same time, I do agree the idea that the incremental cost of the 12 Pro is small enough to choose it for many reasons. But I don't see why the phone's life (in itself) impacts storage capacity?

You can see I don't swap often! (My previous smart phone was a Galaxy S II!) And yes, I have gone for the 12 Pro.

Good point. Not everyone need that much space. But a lot of people are or will soon.
I got the 128GB XR thinking I was set for life.

Then I got a GoPro. My phone is constantly at capacity, having to unload apps and pics to iCloud all the time.

I’m sure there are dozens of other use cases that cause similar problems.

 

[MartyvH]

I think most people are holding off on the mini till they can actually see it to make sure it's not to small. Plus the market for the mini is not the same as the pre-order first day market.

That may be true, but I'm not waiting. I had the MacRumors screenshot of the mini's screen in Photos on my iPhone XS since July. Thanks MacRumors! I am fully aware of what I'm pre-ordering right on my region's time of 11pm on Friday 6 November. 😁 I have until then to decide on the colour............

 

[wittyphrase]

For someone in your shoes (which is where I was when the announcement first happened) I just don't get where the 12 Pro has a place. If you want the best camera you want the 12 Pro Max. If you want the most portable device you want the 12 Mini. If you want a good iPhone but don't care a ton about the camera and either don't want or care about the smaller size then you want the 12.

The 12 Pro seems to be the phone where all you get are the tradeoffs at a higher price. I legitimately don't get the draw of it.

For me the size of the max is a negative that more than offsets the camera enhancement I would otherwise be interested in were its convenience not rendered moot to me by it’s size. With that in mind, the max to me represents both a size penalty and a price penalty. But I recognize how people value something like the size is totally subjective.

I think someone else said this too, but it seems more like the standard 12 is the device that’s kind of the odd man out. It has neither the camera, processor or build advantages of the pros, nor the size benefit of the mini.

 

[aleni]

I doubt the battery is the issue here With the Mini, it’s likely the smaller display. Even so, Apples product line with the iPhone is so expansive, there’s a model/price point for everyone, it’s no longer about two options anymore.

I heard it's similar to the XS Max which is pretty good. The point is, people who prefer the mini/compact phones usually don't play games or watch videos a lot on their phones.

 

[e.clinton]

Shocking since Apple removed a wall plug and EarPods! Figured this would be the worst ever according to many people.

I hate the decision not to include these things but it wouldn't stop me from purchasing the phone. Apple includes a USB C to Lightening cable in the box and then claims "everyone already has a charger". Huh??? No, people do not have USB C wall chargers laying around. Just admit that this fattened your margin and that's it.

I mean, if they cared so much about the damn environment, they should skip a year in shipping new phones. That'd make a massive difference since we don't NEED new iPhones.

 

[pioneer9k]

I was wondering about the telephoto... I'm still on my sturdy 6S but want to upgrade for a better camera. I make videos for social media, mainly with my SONY A6400. I was wondering if the iPhone 12 (Pro) could be a much handier, quicker to setup device for filming, and if the telephoto would be a must. Any advise?

For social media, id say its pretty adequate honestly. Ive done plenty with my X and it'll only be better with the 12. Now if you mean YouTube or other long form, id probably stick to a dedicated camera. But short videos or quick ads etc I think it works pretty great.

 

[Zammir]

Right. Because if we didn’t have all four phones launching at the same time, we wouldn’t get more accurate results.....
#smallerphonesftw

 

[Zdigital2015]

But you can't even order the Mini yet. How will we know consumer demand until people actually have an opportunity to buy it? Apple may make an initial guess at a demand to start production and establish some inventory - which is what Kuo's data actually means - but until we see what people want, nobody really knows.

Max of 20% of sales at this point. The current market for an SE sized iPhone is as tiny as the iPhone SE was. The iPhone XR or 11 are a way better deal and that will drive quite a few sales. Once the mini acolytes are satisfied, and make their purchase, we’ll start seeing carrier discounts galore on the mini and the regular 12, mix and match, BOGO Free. For cost conscious consumers who must have 5G, this will be their go to. The rest of us have moved on to larger iPhones.

 

[Stan.06]

I'm getting the iPhone 12 mini with 256GB, that's how serious I am. That phone will be used and handed down through my family for years to come. Unless there will be no iPhone 13 mini, then it stays in my hands

When an Iphone enters your family's heritage

 

[locrumo]

Lidar can be used as a fingerprint sensor?
The iphone 12 has everything except the most important in these days.

 

[ericwn]

I hate the decision not to include these things but it wouldn't stop me from purchasing the phone. Apple includes a USB C to Lightening cable in the box and then claims "everyone already has a charger". Huh??? No, people do not have USB C wall chargers laying around. Just admit that this fattened your margin and that's it.

I mean, if they cared so much about the damn environment, they should skip a year in shipping new phones. That'd make a massive difference since we don't NEED new iPhones.

Apple didn’t claim that everyone has a usbc charger but one that will do the job which is pretty accurate in my and plenty other households where iPhone and iPad are being used for a decade.

They will however include a cable to make you able to connect it to devices that are produced now as we all know what would happen if the plug wasn’t usb-c - an outrage on MR saying “oh why oh why do they give us no cable / the old obsolete usb a plug”.

 

[Abazigal]

I hate the decision not to include these things but it wouldn't stop me from purchasing the phone. Apple includes a USB C to Lightening cable in the box and then claims "everyone already has a charger". Huh??? No, people do not have USB C wall chargers laying around. Just admit that this fattened your margin and that's it.

I mean, if they cared so much about the damn environment, they should skip a year in shipping new phones. That'd make a massive difference since we don't NEED new iPhones.

The two are not mutually exclusive.

 

[az431]

The majority of people aren’t changing their phones each year, not even each two years and they want to future proof their phones for at least 3 to 4 years before upgrading to a newer one.

Stainless steel, more ram and a better camera setup helps with that and apparently they have no problem paying the price difference.

Did you take a survey or is this just a hunch?

 

[iDento]

Did you take a survey or is this just a hunch?

https://www.cnbc.com/2019/05/17/smartphone-users-are-waiting-longer-before-upgrading-heres-why.html