If you pre-ordered the iPhone 15 this year, you’ll have to wait about 10 days-a good week and a half-before the phone arrives. Yeah, this seems like nothing to sweat about compared to the Pro models which even now still require a wait of about a month. But as noted by Bloomberg, the 10-day wait for the iPhone 15 in the U.S. is nearly twice the length of the six-day wait for the iPhone 14 that buyers of the most basic model had to sit through last year.
In the U.S., waiting time increases have been seen year-over-year for the iPhone 15 and the iPhone 15 Pro Max according to Counterpoint Research. The iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus added the Dynamic Island, a 48MP Wide camera, the A16 Bionic chip, and the USB-C port. The iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max both were given the new 3nm A17 Pro application processor, 8GB of RAM, a Titanium chassis, the new Action button, and the USB-C port. However, the iPhone 15 Pro Max is the only model to get the “periscope” lens allowing it to offer 5x optical zoom.
Wait times for pre-ordered iPhone models in the U.S.
As a result, sales of the iPhone 15 Pro Max are siphoning some revenue away from the iPhone 15 Pro. As for the iPhone 15, we can only imagine that the lower price tag might be taking some business away from the iPhone 15 Plus.
In China, the wait times for the iPhone 15 quadrupled over last year’s iPhone 14 wait times. China is Apple’s largest foreign market for the iPhone and there had been fears about dampened demand due to the introduction of Huawei’s Mate 60 Pro 5G and the ban against using iPhones in certain government offices.
Despite the nationalism unleashed when Huawei released its new 5G flagship phone, the iPhone 15 line is doing well in China
Chalk up another successful call from TF International’s Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo who told clients that those who buy Huawei’s phones don’t buy the iPhone, and neither do the government officials who cannot use Apple’s handset when they are at the office. Archie Zhang, an analyst at Counterpoint Research says, “And as far as ultra-premium is concerned, the Pro Max is still the most coveted iPhone in China with long delivery wait times reflecting this.”
Meanwhile, black market prices for the iPhone in China have been restrained despite the better-than-expected demand for the iPhone 15 series. This could indicate that many Chinese iPhone 15 buyers are trading in their previous handset. “In a year marked by declining smartphone demand, the trade-in program is expected to play a pivotal role in reducing psychological barriers for those contemplating a new phone purchase,” said Counterpoint’s Ivan Lam. “It’s becoming an increasingly vital contributor to Apple’s market dominance.”
