Preorders for iPhone 14 Pro lineup strong, iPhone 14 Plus weak

AppleInsider

Preorders for Apple's iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max are very high compared to its non-Pro counterparts, a survey by analyst Ming-Chi Kuo indicates, but it seems demand for the iPhone 14 Plus isn't close to that of the iPhone 13 mini it replaces.

An initial check on preorders by TF Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo occurring the weekend after Apple's launch event seems to show Apple is enjoying good demand for the iPhone 14 generation compared to the iPhone 13. However, it seems the bulk of the attention is for Apple's Pro range.

According to Kuo, preorders for the lineup are better than that of the iPhone 13 in general, but still classifiable as "neutral." On a product-specific basis for preorders, Kuo says the iPhone 14 Pro Max is "good" while the Pro is "neutral," before deeming the standard models as "bad."

The iPhone 14 Pro Max preorders are doing a lot better than the iPhone 13 counterpart, and is signified by the longer than four-week delivery time, heading towards six weeks. Meanwhile, the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus are expected to be in stock on launch day, which reflects "lackluster demand."

Kuo has a dim view of the iPhone 14 Plus demand, claiming its pre-order result "is significantly lower than expected," and that Apple's "product segmentation strategy for standard models fails this year." At the moment, the preorders for the iPhone 14 and Plus "is worse than the iPhone SE 3 and iPhone 13 mini."

While the iPhone 14 Plus may be falling behind at this stage, the likeliest explanation at this point is that the Plus model isn't shipping until October, rather than September. The skew towards the Pro models on early preorders has historically been at the expense of non-pro models popularity as well, reflecting the preferences of early adopters and annual upgraders.

Also, the compare isn't equivalent, as Apple has a very small -- but very loyal -- contingent of fans for smaller iPhones. Early preorder percentages for the iPhone 12 mini and iPhone 13 mini were skewed higher than purchase volume percentages two months after release.

The number of preorders for Pro models "proves again that Apple has numerous loyal and sticky customers amid the deteriorating economy," Kuo writes, though that doesn't necessarily mean Apple will up its orders for the Pro models immediately. "Whether Apple will increase Pro orders depends on how long the strong demand for Pro models can last amid the recession," he continues.

Shipment forecasts for the iPhone 14 and Plus in November may be cut within weeks if demand doesn't improve post-launch, the analyst reckons. Meanwhile, strong demand for the Pro models will probably last until at least November.

For the supply chain, Kuo tells investors to "watch Pro models' major beneficiaries," namely supply chain firms, who could beat the seasonality of sales in Q1 2023 due to increased component demand and higher component prices.

Firms who do not work in the Pro model pipeline face a significant decline in revenue in September and October, Kuo theorizes.

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entropys

Well, you would expect pro sales to outstrip at preorder as non flagship phones roll out more steadily and the preorder buyers are chasing higher end.

that said, there isn’t much point in buying an iPhone 14

• when virtually the same performance and most of the features can be got from a cheaper iPhone 13.
• apple prices have increased.
• Apple prices have really increased overseas.

 And there is a possibility a lot of people opted to keep their current iPhone and buy the AirPods Pro 2  with their cash instead. They stayed the same price as the old model.

JanNL

entropys said:

Well, you would expect pro sales to outstrip at preorder as non flagship phones roll out more steadily and the preorder buyers are chasing higher end.

that said, there isn’t much point in buying an iPhone 14

• when virtually the same performance and most of the features can be got from a cheaper iPhone 13.
• apple prices have increased.
• Apple prices have really increased overseas.

 And there is a possibility a lot of people opted to keep their current iPhone and buy the AirPods Pro 2  with their cash instead. They stayed the same price as the old model.

All true. Just bought an iPhone 13 mini today for the size and also for the “really increased” prices of the 14 in europe.

M68000

entropys said:

Well, you would expect pro sales to outstrip at preorder as non flagship phones roll out more steadily and the preorder buyers are chasing higher end.

that said, there isn’t much point in buying an iPhone 14

• when virtually the same performance and most of the features can be got from a cheaper iPhone 13.
• apple prices have increased.
• Apple prices have really increased overseas.

 And there is a possibility a lot of people opted to keep their current iPhone and buy the AirPods Pro 2  with their cash instead. They stayed the same price as the old model.

Great points.  It backs up an earlier post where I thought that maybe Apple should do 3 phones,  all the same features but just in different screen sizes.  They could still keep the very entry level SE in addition for very price conscious customers and large corporations love this type of phone.   What we have now with the 14 series is 4 phones but just 2 screen sizes.  I have to question how good that is.

M68000

JanNL said:

entropys said:

Well, you would expect pro sales to outstrip at preorder as non flagship phones roll out more steadily and the preorder buyers are chasing higher end.

that said, there isn’t much point in buying an iPhone 14

• when virtually the same performance and most of the features can be got from a cheaper iPhone 13.
• apple prices have increased.
• Apple prices have really increased overseas.

 And there is a possibility a lot of people opted to keep their current iPhone and buy the AirPods Pro 2  with their cash instead. They stayed the same price as the old model.

All true. Just bought an iPhone 13 mini today for the size and also for the “really increased” prices of the 14 in europe.

Enjoy that new phone,  I love mine.

kdupuis77

entropys said:

Well, you would expect pro sales to outstrip at preorder as non flagship phones roll out more steadily and the preorder buyers are chasing higher end.

that said, there isn’t much point in buying an iPhone 14

• when virtually the same performance and most of the features can be got from a cheaper iPhone 13.
• apple prices have increased.
• Apple prices have really increased overseas.

 And there is a possibility a lot of people opted to keep their current iPhone and buy the AirPods Pro 2  with their cash instead. They stayed the same price as the old model.

That's exactly what I did! Holding on to the 13 Pro (Still showing 100% battery health after a year!) and opted for the new AirPods Pro 2nd Gen and just sold my original ones on eBay last night. After 3 years, the battery isn't so great anymore and I don't have the minor MagSafe upgrade (which is nice) in my original case, so why not do the upgrade then lol?

JFC_PA

Mine (14 pro max) has departed the (CN) facility! 

slow n easy

I figured there was high demand because I Preordered an iPhone 14 Pro 1h 40m after preorders started and delivery was pushed to mid October. This might be an odd reason for upgrading but I really hated the Sierra Blue color and that is the biggest reason I bought a case for it. This time I went with Space Black and if it’s pure black I likely won’t want a case. It only costs $400 with my trade in so that’s not too bad. I feel so happy with a 60% trade in value.

PChin

M68000 said:

entropys said:

Well, you would expect pro sales to outstrip at preorder as non flagship phones roll out more steadily and the preorder buyers are chasing higher end.

that said, there isn’t much point in buying an iPhone 14

• when virtually the same performance and most of the features can be got from a cheaper iPhone 13.
• apple prices have increased.
• Apple prices have really increased overseas.

 And there is a possibility a lot of people opted to keep their current iPhone and buy the AirPods Pro 2  with their cash instead. They stayed the same price as the old model.

Great points.  It backs up an earlier post where I thought that maybe Apple should do 3 phones,  all the same features but just in different screen sizes.  They could still keep the very entry level SE in addition for very price conscious customers and large corporations love this type of phone.   What we have now with the 14 series is 4 phones but just 2 screen sizes.  I have to question how good that is.

I have a feel that 13 mini might become iPhone SE in the near future. That the only reasoning, that would make sense for this move of introducing 14 plus. 

JanNL

M68000 said:

JanNL said:

entropys said:

Well, you would expect pro sales to outstrip at preorder as non flagship phones roll out more steadily and the preorder buyers are chasing higher end.

that said, there isn’t much point in buying an iPhone 14

• when virtually the same performance and most of the features can be got from a cheaper iPhone 13.
• apple prices have increased.
• Apple prices have really increased overseas.

 And there is a possibility a lot of people opted to keep their current iPhone and buy the AirPods Pro 2  with their cash instead. They stayed the same price as the old model.

All true. Just bought an iPhone 13 mini today for the size and also for the “really increased” prices of the 14 in europe.

Enjoy that new phone,  I love mine.

Thanks! Waited to see what iPhone 14 would bring, but no "small" size and don't want to wait for the new SE...

foad

As stated in the article, preorders typically favor the higher spending consumers and this year saw an outsized feature upgrade on the Pros, so that is probably factoring into this. The “default” iPhone is just that. The consumers of that phone will buy that throughout the year. I’d also add, that we have no idea what the manufacturing mix for the devices is. delivery dates are a signal but it isn’t always representative of the demand. 

maury markowitz

I cannot fathom any reason for buying a 14 (non-Pro). It is the 13 with satellite coms (but only with no trees!) and crash detection. That is not worth $100.

Madbum

maury markowitz said:

I cannot fathom any reason for buying a 14 (non-Pro). It is the 13 with satellite coms (but only with no trees!) and crash detection. That is not worth $100.

That is until you crash with nobody around…

foad

maury markowitz said:

I cannot fathom any reason for buying a 14 (non-Pro). It is the 13 with satellite coms (but only with no trees!) and crash detection. That is not worth $100.

The cameras are better, a little bit better battery life, the bigger phone is something that will catch on, etc. The reality is that most buyers of the regular iPhones won’t be upgrading and for others, it will be their every 3-4 year upgrade this go around.

Japhey

slow n easy said:

I figured there was high demand because I Preordered an iPhone 14 Pro 1h 40m after preorders started and delivery was pushed to mid October. This might be an odd reason for upgrading but I really hated the Sierra Blue color and that is the biggest reason I bought a case for it. This time I went with Space Black and if it’s pure black I likely won’t want a case. It only costs $400 with my trade in so that’s not too bad. I feel so happy with a 60% trade in value.

Same here. I hated that Sierra Blue color too, so I ordered my first black iPhone since the iPhone 4 days. I was a little less excited with the trade-in values this year, which gave me $70 less than last year. But last year did seem extra generous, so I’m not really complaining. ($390 vs $320)

jellybelly

It’s a shame that the trade-in rebate is exactly the same whether you’re trading in a 256 GB to 512 GB or 1 TB of storage. So I’m getting the same rebate on my trade-in that’s 1TB for which I paid $400 extra last year and I don’t get that $400 out of it—I get zero for the extra storage. I would think they would sell refurbished phones that have more storage for more money. I wish the trade-in value was proportional to what they can sell them for.