FP StaffOct 20, 2022 13:29:39 IST
Apple launched the iPhone 14 and the iPhone 14 Plus early in September this year. After barely a month, Apple has decided that it will start phasing out the production of the iPhone 14 Plus, and then stop it completely.
iPhone 14 Plus’ pricing seems to be the issue. It seems that people don’t see the point of buying a base variant iPhone 14 Plus for Rs 89,900 when they can get the 256GB variant of the iPhone 14 for the same amount. Image Credit: Apple
Tech analysts and Apple fans had expected that the iPhone 14 Plus wouldn’t perform to the level that Apple was expecting it to. Historically, devices that were of an odd size, and weren’t true flagship device from Apple, has failed to garner good sales.
This was especially true for the iPhone 13 Mini. Similarly, the iPhone 14 Plus, which was dubbed as the iPhone 14 Max by the tech community before it was launched, has gone the same way.
In case of the iPhone 13 Mini, the issue was the diminutive size of the device. When it comes to iPhones, people prefer a regular-sized device and not a smaller and seemingly cheaper version, since most iPhone users, purchase the device for clout.
In iPhone 14 Max’s situation, the issue was the price of the device. It seems that people don’t see the point of buying a base variant iPhone 14 Plus for Rs 89,900 when they can get the 256GB variant of the iPhone 14 for the same amount.
Some reports suggest that it seems that Apple has already halted the production of the iPhone 14 Plus and is reassessing the demand for the device across markets.
Citing supply chain sources, reports suggest that Apple has reached out to at least one iPhone assembly partner to immediately halt the production of the iPhone 14 Plus and has also contacted two component suppliers to lower production by up to 90 per cent.
The report also mentions that at least one iPhone supplier has been instructed to ramp up component production for the iPhone 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max models.
There is no official comment from Apple about these developments.
Apple was rumoured to be continuing with their current sizing and naming scheme for the iPhone 15 series as well, and launch the iPhone 15 Max or iPhone 15 Plus. It will be interesting to see if Apple still continues down that path and price the device more competitively, or change its lineup slightly.
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