“Apple Inc.’s new iPhone, which is expected to be unveiled Tuesday, was plagued by production glitches early in the manufacturing process this summer, according to people familiar with the situation, which could result in extended supply shortfalls and shipping delays when customers start ordering the device later this month,” Yoko Kubota, Tripp Mickle, and Takashi Mochizuki report for The Wall Street Journal. “New iPhones are typically in short supply when first released. But if shortfalls of the new phone extend beyond the initial sales period, which is expected to begin September 22, they could weaken analysts’ and investors’ projections for sales in the crucial holiday period.”
“The production glitches led to a setback of about a month in the manufacturing timetable,” Kubota, Mickle, and Mochizuki report. “There are big expectations for the new iPhone, informally dubbed the iPhone 8 or iPhone X by industry watchers. Investors, betting the new phone will rejuvenate Apple’s sales after a recent slump, have pushed Apple’s share price to record highs in recent months.”
Kubota, Mickle, and Mochizuki report, “The new device is expected to have a base price near $1,000 — a significant premium over existing models — in part because of more expensive components.”
MacDailyNews Take: Again, we paid US$969, before taxes, for our 256GB Jet Black iPhone 7 Plus units last year, so, no, it’s not “a significant premium over existing models.”
“The production delays earlier this summer stemmed from Apple’s decision to build new phones using organic light-emitting diode (OLED) screens,” Kubota, Mickle, and Mochizuki report. “The display modules are being produced in Vietnam by an affiliate of Samsung Electronics. Unlike the OLED display module in Samsung’s own smartphones, in which the display and touch panel are integrated, iPhone’s display module has the touch panel outside of the display, according to a person familiar with the technology. The iPhone manufacturing process requires more steps and more layers of adhesive and protective film than are involved in Samsung’s manufacturing process, the person familiar with the process said, creating a greater risk of manufacturing error.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: The scarcity will make the iPhone, with its premium OLED display, even more desirable.
SAME STUPID SHORT-SELLER BULLSHIT BEFORE EVERY GDMF NEW iPhone!!! Where the HELL is the GDMF SEC on this CRAP!!! Appppple is doooooomed….buy a SamDung…….selllll….buy soybeans……..DOOOMED!
Buy the dips…..!!
This story is so old, the morons can’t come up with the new ideas, so they just rinsed and repeated same old rumors for every new iPhone launches. Gene Munster is one of them, he is not an analyst but stock manipulator.
If only there were someone versed in supply chain management in the hierarchy at Apple, problems like this could be resolved!
So we have rumors, and “confirmed” rumors. It’s the same BS every year…and I think the yellow journalists for helping me trade AAPL at a discount!
Recent slump…didn’t Apple just have ANOTHER RECORD QUARTER..lol. That said, Apple does have a long recent string of production issues. Started with the 6..some early production phones had display/glue issues where glue wasn’t fully dry causing temporary artifact on screen and..when eventually cured (the glue), phone speaker on top and FaceTime camera settled shifted to left..partially obscuring camera and speaker. I was one lucky enough to get one of those and still kick myself for not having it replaced (really hard to hear with phone to ear).
The more complicated the hardware, the more likely you will have a few early QC issues. Also the price you pay for making such a desirable product. If even a few insignificant number have an issue, the world explodes and people freak. Meanwhile, the competition literally had phones that explode and people prendended it wasn’t a problem, lol.
Price increase for significantly better technology (reasonably assumed) is just over 3%. This is not news, just tech hyperventilation. If the delays are significant…truly affecting Christmas sales, then we have some relevant news. Until then, here’s to the $1000 pocket computer and likely AI machine that will likely become a/the market leader.
There isn’t a such thing as a “confirmed” rumor. You have to be kidding with the title of this article, right?
True. I can confirm “rumors” that fluoride makes you stupid..or that vaccines “cause” autism..can even back them up with “articles” (fake news and Facebook posts)…but still not true 😉 The “confirm rumors” line is just so common now it slipped past my radar.
an oxymoron for sure.
My sources suspect that the confirmation of the rumors is just hearsay.
— or so I’m told.
Lose the ability to do math, MDN? Comparing a fully loaded 7+ to a base OLED “8” is specious at best. The base price of a 7+ is $769. A 30% higher base price for the OLED version is most certainly a significant premium, one I’m fully willing to pay. Just call it what it is you inconsistent assholes.