Apple suppliers expect 'iPhone 6' sales to be 20% greater than iPhone 5s
Suppliers in the Far East gearing up for Apple's "iPhone 6" are reportedly anticipating 20 percent growth from last year's iPhone 5s launch, setting the stage for the biggest iPhone debut yet.
Analyst Katy Huberty of Morgan Stanley recently took a trip to visit technology industry component suppliers, who shared their expectations for Apple's next iPhone. From those conversations, Huberty said in a note to investors on Monday that she sees no major bottleneck for "iPhone 6" components, suggesting that Apple and its suppliers may not have a difficult time keeping up with demand.
Apple doesn't break down iPhone sales by model, so it's unknown exactly how well the iPhone 5s sold at launch compared to the iPhone 5 a year prior. However, total iPhone sales in the December 2013 quarter were up just 6.7 percent year over year, which was a much slower growth rate than the company had seen previously.
The indications from suppliers suggest that Apple's next iPhone, which is rumored to come with a larger display, could reignite sales growth.
Huberty expects that the next iPhone could have a bill of materials $20 to $30 higher than the current iPhone 5s, largely due to the expectation of a larger display and improved camera.
"However, we don't detect any abnormal component pricing pressure from Apple suggesting lower inventory, deprecation, and warranty costs along with the potential for a modest price increase and/or NAND mix change may help digest the higher (bill of materials)," she wrote.
Beyond the iPhone, Huberty expects the rest of 2014 to be weak for the tablet market, including Apple's iPad. Her conversations with suppliers led her to forecast iPad shipments will decrease by 1 percent in the second half of the year and through 2015.
Suppliers are also said to be skeptical about wearable devices, which leads Huberty to believe that the nascent market could provide an upside surprise in 2015 volumes. She predicts that if Apple were to launch a so-called "iWatch," it could outsell the iPad in its first quarter.
Analyst Katy Huberty of Morgan Stanley recently took a trip to visit technology industry component suppliers, who shared their expectations for Apple's next iPhone. From those conversations, Huberty said in a note to investors on Monday that she sees no major bottleneck for "iPhone 6" components, suggesting that Apple and its suppliers may not have a difficult time keeping up with demand.
Apple doesn't break down iPhone sales by model, so it's unknown exactly how well the iPhone 5s sold at launch compared to the iPhone 5 a year prior. However, total iPhone sales in the December 2013 quarter were up just 6.7 percent year over year, which was a much slower growth rate than the company had seen previously.
The indications from suppliers suggest that Apple's next iPhone, which is rumored to come with a larger display, could reignite sales growth.
Huberty expects that the next iPhone could have a bill of materials $20 to $30 higher than the current iPhone 5s, largely due to the expectation of a larger display and improved camera.
"However, we don't detect any abnormal component pricing pressure from Apple suggesting lower inventory, deprecation, and warranty costs along with the potential for a modest price increase and/or NAND mix change may help digest the higher (bill of materials)," she wrote.
Beyond the iPhone, Huberty expects the rest of 2014 to be weak for the tablet market, including Apple's iPad. Her conversations with suppliers led her to forecast iPad shipments will decrease by 1 percent in the second half of the year and through 2015.
Suppliers are also said to be skeptical about wearable devices, which leads Huberty to believe that the nascent market could provide an upside surprise in 2015 volumes. She predicts that if Apple were to launch a so-called "iWatch," it could outsell the iPad in its first quarter.
Comments
Could I get by without an iMac, MBA or even an iPad? Just the 6, iCloud, iWork, iTunes, airplay and a dumb large flat panel HDTV. Oh, I guess I'd need an ATV and an Apple wifi.
Imagine, my only tech in my house would be the 6 with one charger brick, one cable, one bill to T-Mobile.
20% increase is an insult to their calculations and Apple.
iPhone 6 is going to be the biggest phone launch ever, that goes with out saying.
Every iPhone has sold more than its predecessor so not much of a production is it....
If they just changed the case design it'd sell boatloads more, but you can bet they will be aiming for a lot more than a new case and bumped specs.
I think I might be finally able to get rid of my trusty iPhone 4s.
"iPhone 6" and "iPhone 6c" concepts by Martin Hajek.
Why waste time on a concept of a device that won’t be out until next year when we don’t even know this year’s device’s design? Or if the former design will even be continued?
Because that's what we do this time of year. Until we see the finished Apple product, almost anything is fair game.
No time to write my post again but basically I see sales going much higher than a 20% increase.
If the 6 looks like the one by Martin, I am definitely going to upgrade my 5S.
Those do look great. Liking the 6c a lot too. Who knows what they are going to do with the "c" category this year. We know it'll be 5s internals, but a bigger screen? I doubt this year.
Is it? I didn’t see people wondering what the 2024 Mac Pro’s design would look like.
Not the “6C” design.
Again... Would a deal survive transfer of ownership? Would the Beats name remain or would the Apple name replace them?
Uninformed speculation is fun for us, but also a huge waste of time.
Dude, very glad I'm not employed by you, otherwise I might waste your valuable time!
Here's a fun piece about criticism: http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/05/10/young-minds-in-critical-condition/ :-)
You are on the nose. This will be the biggest launch in iphone history. The only thing that could dampen it, will be the buyers waiting on the 5.5".
Why waste time on a concept of a device that won’t be out until next year when we don’t even know this year’s device’s design? Or if the former design will even be continued?
Because that's what we think this years design will look like in Sept 2014...
Is it? I didn’t see people wondering what the 2024 Mac Pro’s design would look like.
They weren't wondering about the original iPhone back in 1997, either. I'd imagine that the iPhone has a much bigger user base than the Mac Pro. Just a wild guess.