Why I think the 8 isn't a great choice for people who don't upgrade every year

[TravisPNW]

I wonder how much people will actually feel "stuck" with a proven user experience?

Consider all those people who stayed with a 5S for YEARS after they would have upgraded simply because they didn't want a big phone and the 5S was the size they preferred.

This may prove to be even more common with the iPhone X. For many people then losing the Home Button and TouchID in favor of Software Gestures an FaceID is considered a downgrade. So I think that for many (most) people then the choice to stick with an "old" design may actually be the right decision.

Yep.... for me the X is a downgrade. I don't care about software gestures and FaceID. I prefer the Plus screen... not a longer and narrow screen.

An X Plus would have had me somewhat more interested... but I don't know if even that would have been enough for me to buy one.

8 Plus arrives tomorrow.

 

[maflynn]

Apple isn't a luxury product,

Sure it is, nearly 3k for a laptop, 1,000 for a phone. Selling a watch 1,300 dollars.

 

[JPack]

All good points! It's hard to say at the moment how well the 8 series is selling but going on past lead times it looks like it's not selling nearly as well as previous years iPhones, which may indicate a few different things 1) that people prefer the new design over the current one if upgrading and are waiting for the X, 2) They are happy with their current phones, 3) the pricing has pushed too far.
Obviously we won't know until Apple's earnings report how well the phones are doing, and Apple may not break down 8 an X sales separately so we may never know exact numbers for each model.

The point of the $999 pricing is Apple knows it won't be selling a high volume compared to iPhone 6 or 7. The higher revenue and margins are expected to make up for the lower volume.

The majority of people are satisfied with their iPhone 6 or 7 as the industry is reaching its peak.

Apple's fiscal year ends September 30, 2017. We'll know very soon how well the iPhone 8 sold, by the end of October.

 

[iFan83]

Brace yourselves 2018 will be the year all the flagships across every major manufacturer will be around $1000. They've already all eased us into it this year. They will see the market is for the most part willing to pay. The consumer has done this to themselves.

Dont buy it then, theres no reason to pay the money for the X. Its just a cell phone. I tried taking my 6 out of the case last night and popped the screen off a bit so if I decide to upgrade it'll be for the 7 or 8. As cool as the X looks I just can't justify the cost for a cell phone that I use to check emails, text, listen to music/audiobooks, make calls on and very light web browsing, I surely don't need a $1000 cell for those things.

 

[rui no onna]

Those of us who don't upgrade very year are usually not looking at the "style" but more that the old phone is running slower or has some type of damage that forces us to upgrade. Three years from now, guess what....the X will still be there

Three years from now, the X will have been replaced by quite likely something better that is the new "must-have" device.

Future proofing is a fool's errand and the 8, 8 Plus and X share the same processor anyway.

 

[Jimmy James]

Hardware changes as they impact new, standardized interfaces makes for a great point.

Styling for the sake of fashion or prestige is of no interest to me. I just took a coffee break and watched a video. At no point did I wish someone would notice and think better of me or my phone. If they did I simply wouldn't mind it care.

I do like that we're getting previous generation options beyond the minimum capacity variants. A 2 year old phone is now a good experience and satisfies all of my uses. If that continues I'm going to continue to upgrade to previous generation phones when they're cheap. A few months ago I got a 6s 128GB for almost no up front cost and minimal impact on my monthly bill. Maybe I'll do the same with the 8 in a couple years.

 

[ForumChick]

Anybody who has a 6S or SE or newer shouldn't buy a 8 or 8+. X however is up to you.

Another reason is that the 8 is the third year with just 2 GB RAM. And it is the last year for such an expensive iPhone with just 2 GB RAM.

I don't think Apple will just have two new iPhones next year. But if they do, then the cheapest iPhone would be at least USD 800ish or so.

Yo do realize that that phone with just 2 gigs of ram is faster on benchmarks than Samsungs with over 6 gigs

 

[boygiant]

I upgraded to the 8 Plus from my 6s Plus because I want to hold on to Touch ID for a few more years while it's still available. Also because I don't particularly care for bezel-less displays (I know, I need to get used to it). And I certainly don't care for the notch. I think within two or three years, by the time my 8 is ready to be upgraded, the notch will be gone and the UX problems will be ironed out. Meanwhile, I'll have an excellent 8 Plus on my hands.