An annual survey by Piper Jaffray finds that the percentage of iPhone users willing to upgrade to new models this year declined from last year despite the lower average selling price.
Buyer interest in Apple’s latest iPhone lineup is lower than last year despite a more affordable price, an annual survey by Piper Jaffray found.
While Apple’s new iPhone 11 starts at $699, $50 less than last year’s iPhone XR, customers may be holding out for 5G models that the company is reportedly preparing to release next year, according to a top analyst. The Piper Jaffray survey of more than 1,500 U.S. iPhone users found 51% of respondents said they would buy one of the new versions of the iPhone this year, compared with 69% last year after the release of the iPhone XR, XS and XS Max.
Sales this year will likely skew toward the lower-priced models, Piper Jaffray analysts said, but unit sales will remain relatively flat. The analysts predicted Apple’s fiscal year 2020 iPhone revenue will decline about 1% year over year.
To gauge interest in the 5G phone, Piper Jaffray asked about 1,050 current U.S. iPhone owners if they would upgrade to a 5G iPhone for $1,200. Of the respondents, 23% said they would. That’s up from 18% of respondents when Piper Jaffray asked the same question in June.
MacDailyNews Take: The jury’s still out on whether this is a placeholder year for iPhone ahead of the 5G iPhone super cycle. We’ve seen reports for higher-than-expected demand at launch for iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 11 Max, but perhaps we were correct to prognosticate prior to the iPhones unveiling that this would be a “placeholder” year. We bet Apple has some tricks up their sleeve they plan to use to keep sales flowing until the 5G iPhone arrives (marketing, promotions, incentives, etc).
As we wrote in mid-August, “this year is a placeholder year for iPhone ahead of the 5G avalanche. We’re most interested in how Apple’s marketing apparatus will attempt to sell iPhones (think: Camera, Camera, Camera!) in a year where many of us with iPhone X/XS/XS Max units (and even older Home-button based iPhones) may simply be on a holding pattern until iPhone 5G.”
Of course, iPhone could have [no new features] and still sell 40+ million units every 90 days. And, also of course, Apple will have a new A13 that’s more efficient along with iOS 13 which will also improve efficiency, so better battery life is likely in the offing. New cameras, especially on the back, along with new features for Apple’s Camera app are a given and will be the major focus for selling these pre-5G placeholder iPhones to customers through fall 2020 when The Mother of All iPhone Upgrade Cycles™ finally hits! — MacDailyNews, August 18, 2019