iPhone X seen as 'strategic success' for Apple as 3D sensing cameras 2 years ahead of comp...

Posted:
in iPhone edited January 2018
Fretting over iPhone X sales data is a fool's errand, analyst Ming-Chi Kuo believes, as he told investors on Monday that the premium-priced handset is a key strategic move for the company, positioning it far ahead of competitors for years to come.




Kuo, of KGI Securities, said the iPhone X has been a "strategic success" for Apple, cementing long-term competitive advantages for the company with Face ID and the TrueDepth cameras. His take was issued in a note to investors on Monday, a copy of which was obtained by AppleInsider.

In his view, the 3D sensing capabilities in the iPhone X will pave the way for more advanced augmented reality and artificial intelligence applications. These could be simple and fun enhancements like further improvements to Animoji, or more advanced capabilities such as superior understanding of user behavior.

Kuo believes copycats will be in full effect in 2018, scrambling to put their own Face ID competitors into smartphones. But Apple's technical advantages have it up to two years ahead of the competition currently, in his view.

"We believe the iPhone X has established a long-term edge for Apple," he said.




The $999-and-up pricing of the iPhone X has also changed the mindset on what smartphones should cost, giving Apple more flexibility to expand its lineup and introduce premium features in the years to come.

To maintain that pricing psychology, Kuo believes that the 2017 iPhone X will be discontinued later this year -- a prediction he reiterated from a separate note issued last week. Rather than keeping the model around and dropping the price, he believes Apple will introduce new models at the current prices, leaving the legacy iPhone X behind in its sales lineup.

In his view, the iPhone X will prove to be a long-term success for Apple, as future handsets will benefit from the path it has trailblazed. He expects that new handsets in the second half of 2018 will make up for any perceived sales "shortfalls" with the current lineup.

Later this year, Apple is expected to expand the iPhone X lineup with a so-called "iPhone X Plus," boasting the size of a larger Plus-sized iPhone model with an edge-to-edge OLED screen.

It's also expected that a new 6.1-inch LCD model with Face ID and lacking a home button, but without an edge-to-edge OLED display, will also become a part of the iPhone lineup.

Prior to that, Apple is also rumored to ship a budget-priced second-generation iPhone SE that will serve as the new entry-level model. Unlike the iPhone X or new handsets expected in late 2018, it is not anticipated to have advanced technology, and will instead focus on selling the iPhone experience to price-conscious consumers.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 57
    Is Kuo the only fanboy in Walls steet?
    Or he is the only honest one that put the money where his mouth is?
    edited January 2018 watto_cobra
  • Reply 2 of 57
    jbdragonjbdragon Posts: 2,305member
    I don't see Apple dropping the price at all. Since when do they do that? Apple will sell the phone starting at $999 until the iPhone XI or whatever Apple calls it is released later this year. Then the price will drop as it's being replaced.
  • Reply 3 of 57
    wood1208wood1208 Posts: 2,905member
    If LCD 6.1" iPhone X with lower price becomes reality than from the day one Apple must manufacturer in very large quantity. It could become way more popular than iPhone 8S Plus.
  • Reply 4 of 57
    Kuo says that the iPhone X is a dead phone walking woth one voice and with another, he says that it is the base for future phones.
    Seems a bit of hedging one's bets a bit.
  • Reply 5 of 57
    tipootipoo Posts: 1,141member
    "Rather than keeping the model around and dropping the price, he believes Apple will introduce new models at the current prices, leaving the legacy iPhone X behind in its sales lineup."


    Does this mean the X replacement will be the regular iPhone price, or still 999? Or both, one at the regular price with the edge to edgeish screen, the other still at 999 with some hard to scale costly feature (promotion pls)? 
  • Reply 6 of 57
    tundraboytundraboy Posts: 1,884member
    Kuo says that the iPhone X is a dead phone walking woth one voice and with another, he says that it is the base for future phones.
    Seems a bit of hedging one's bets a bit.
    There's no contradiction.  Think about it some more.
    2old4fun
  • Reply 7 of 57
    StrangeDaysStrangeDays Posts: 12,834member
    jbdragon said:
    I don't see Apple dropping the price at all. Since when do they do that? Apple will sell the phone starting at $999 until the iPhone XI or whatever Apple calls it is released later this year. Then the price will drop as it's being replaced.
    I believe the price dropping is referring to the 2017 X potentially having its price dropped when the new 2018 flagship comes out. Traditionally Apple lowers the price on the previous-year's flagship when the new one comes out. Kuo is saying he doesn't think this will happen and that the X may be retired when the 2018 phones come out.
    muthuk_vanalingamwatto_cobra
  • Reply 8 of 57
    tundraboy said:
    Kuo says that the iPhone X is a dead phone walking woth one voice and with another, he says that it is the base for future phones.
    Seems a bit of hedging one's bets a bit.
    There's no contradiction.  Think about it some more.
    You are asking a lot to expect one to read the complete article, understand what has been written and then think about the meaning.
    watto_cobrabeowulfschmidt
  • Reply 9 of 57
    I still say the iPhone X is an IQ test. Are people stupid enough to pay $1k for something Apple makes for a little over $300. That is one hell of a markup.
    If I had a Jeff Bezos $100 Billion I would not pay that much for a cell phone and I have no interest in any face recognition system.

    Cannot for the life of me understand the BFD being made over an OLED screen. As to cameras, I have Leicas that smoke any cell phone snapshot camera.

    Price Consciousness should be translated to rational, sentient being. In the end, your $1k does not buy you faster internet, better sound, better battery life or more storage capacity. It does get you a lighter wallet
    holmstockdfeudalist
  • Reply 10 of 57
    So this is why AAPL is down today when most tech stocks are up 1%.
  • Reply 11 of 57
    iPhone X is Apple’s first phone that is the closest to perfection. Every phone before has had some glaring obmisssion. Copy and paste, video recording,  3G, LTE, big screen, OLED, wireless charging. Etc.  The X is missing basically nothing big.  Only minor problem for me is top right control center swipe. Minor nit-pick.  Great phone. 
    edited January 2018 watto_cobra
  • Reply 12 of 57
    schlackschlack Posts: 719member
    Kuo says that the iPhone X is a dead phone walking woth one voice and with another, he says that it is the base for future phones.
    Seems a bit of hedging one's bets a bit.
    I think you're missunderstanding. What he's saying is that Apple does not intend to keep making the iPhone X and to sell it at a lower price point when the iPhone XI is released. This is actually a positive as it means Apple wants to keep the $1K price point for its premium OLED phone rather than erode that price point by offering the iPhone X for $900 or less. It's going to represent a shift to higher ASP and a clearer separation of the top tier (pro) offering and the budget (1 yr old iPhone 8) offering. Overall good for Apple's business. Although perhaps not as good for any consumers hoping to grab a iPhone X in a year for a cheaper price (although I'm sure there will be plenty of used ones for sale for less).
    edited January 2018
  • Reply 13 of 57
    fallenjtfallenjt Posts: 4,053member
    It’s the same as Touch ID, 2 years ahead any competitor!
    edited January 2018 watto_cobra
  • Reply 14 of 57
    schlackschlack Posts: 719member
    I still say the iPhone X is an IQ test. Are people stupid enough to pay $1k for something Apple makes for a little over $300. That is one hell of a markup.
    If I had a Jeff Bezos $100 Billion I would not pay that much for a cell phone and I have no interest in any face recognition system.

    Cannot for the life of me understand the BFD being made over an OLED screen. As to cameras, I have Leicas that smoke any cell phone snapshot camera.

    Price Consciousness should be translated to rational, sentient being. In the end, your $1k does not buy you faster internet, better sound, better battery life or more storage capacity. It does get you a lighter wallet
    Well, then be thankful that some people will pay this much so that one day your cheap ass can buy a phone with the same capabilities for much less. Would you like to express your hate for those who paid $10,000 for the first cell phones in the 1980's who funded the development of the whole industry and enabled you to own a cell phone for much less?
    StrangeDaysGG1tjwolfbrucemcjony0georgie01watto_cobra
  • Reply 15 of 57
    fallenjtfallenjt Posts: 4,053member
    I still say the iPhone X is an IQ test. Are people stupid enough to pay $1k for something Apple makes for a little over $300. That is one hell of a markup.
    If I had a Jeff Bezos $100 Billion I would not pay that much for a cell phone and I have no interest in any face recognition system.

    Cannot for the life of me understand the BFD being made over an OLED screen. As to cameras, I have Leicas that smoke any cell phone snapshot camera.

    Price Consciousness should be translated to rational, sentient being. In the end, your $1k does not buy you faster internet, better sound, better battery life or more storage capacity. It does get you a lighter wallet
    That’s why you’re not Jeff Bezos but a wanderer in social network blogs!
    can your Leica make a phone call or internet browsing? Leica is pos overrated camera for normal users. Go to DPreiew and look at the reviews!
    btw, ask Samsung how much they priced the Note 8...it’s $969 without a god damn 3-D Face sensor! Now take that to save you $30.
    roundaboutnowStrangeDaysGG1tjwolfrandominternetpersonjony0watto_cobra
  • Reply 16 of 57
    fallenjtfallenjt Posts: 4,053member
    noicc1138 said:
    iPhone X is Apple’s first phone that is the closest to perfection. Every phone before has had some glaring obmisssion. Copy and paste, video recording,  3G, LTE, big screen, OLED, wireless charging. Etc.  The X is missing basically nothing big.  Only minor problem for me is top right control center swipe. Minor nit-pick.  Great phone. 
    I would prefer the custom configurations for top left, right and bottom swipes. Well, these can be done thru software. Other than that, it’s pretty much cosmetic like the notch (well, I actually like it) and camera bump (it still doesn’t bother me with my clear case sitting flat with it).
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 17 of 57
    farmboyfarmboy Posts: 152member
    I still say the iPhone X is an IQ test. Are people stupid enough to pay $1k for something Apple makes for a little over $300. That is one hell of a markup.
    If I had a Jeff Bezos $100 Billion I would not pay that much for a cell phone and I have no interest in any face recognition system.

    Cannot for the life of me understand the BFD being made over an OLED screen. As to cameras, I have Leicas that smoke any cell phone snapshot camera.

    Price Consciousness should be translated to rational, sentient being. In the end, your $1k does not buy you faster internet, better sound, better battery life or more storage capacity. It does get you a lighter wallet
    The retail price of any object has almost no relationship to simply the cost of components, whether it's an iPhone or a loaf of bread or a novel. 
    StrangeDaysrandominternetpersonjony0watto_cobrafastasleep
  • Reply 18 of 57
    zoetmbzoetmb Posts: 2,654member
    jbdragon said:
    I don't see Apple dropping the price at all. Since when do they do that? Apple will sell the phone starting at $999 until the iPhone XI or whatever Apple calls it is released later this year. Then the price will drop as it's being replaced.
    You're arguing with a position that the article didn't make:
    Rather than keeping the model around and dropping the price, he believes Apple will introduce new models at the current prices, leaving the legacy iPhone X behind

  • Reply 19 of 57
    lkrupplkrupp Posts: 10,557member
    The claim of a two year advantage may be correct but the “good enough” universe is already making equivalency pronouncements. Any article about Face ID or AR on the iPhone X is met with the “Samsung has had face unlocking for years” meme. Just the feature is touted, not the quality or usability of the feature. Apple was not first so therefore Apple is behind. And people accept that argument hook, line, and sinker.
    jony0watto_cobraglynh
  • Reply 20 of 57
    Rayz2016Rayz2016 Posts: 6,957member
    So this is why AAPL is down today when most tech stocks are up 1%.
    In a word … pizza. 
    watto_cobra
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