12/11 Update below. This post was originally published on December 8.
Leaks of the iPhone 15 already revealed Apple’s ambitious plans for your latest generation smartphones. But now, new information says those ambitions come at a high price.
Working with How to solveinfluential industry member LeaksApplePro has released a lot of new information about the iPhone 15, including price increases that are likely to surprise US buyers.
Flat-edge iPhone 15 Ultra concept based on leaks
Last month, the leaker revealed that the BOM for the iPhone 15 Ultra, Apple’s new name for its ‘Pro Max’ models, will be increase up to $100. Now LeaksApplePro claims the iPhone 15 Ultra will start at as low as $1,299, a $200 bump on the iPhone 14 Pro Max and the biggest generational leap in iPhone history.
“It’s going to be a more expensive iPhone. Even in the United States”, explains the leaker. “Apple has been losing margins year after year. Rising production costs and inflation, which makes the money the company has in the bank worth less, have finally broken the camel’s back.”
LeaksApplePro claims that “we don’t know the status of the other devices in the line.” That said, with a starting price of $1,299 that could see the iPhone 15 Ultra bump up to $1,799 for the 1TB model, this is likely to have a knock-on effect across the rest of the range because Apple doesn’t like it. have an abyss between products in the same line.
Apple iPhone 15 Ultra render based on recent rumors of curved edges
On the other hand, the iPhone 15 Ultra will give you more for your money. LeaksApplePro claims that the iPhone 15 Ultra will ship with a minimum of 256GB (double the current entry point of 128GB), which will ease some of the pain of the price increase.
In addition, the leaker reiterates that the new model will come with dual front cameras, USB-C with Thunderbolt 4 (40 Gbps) it will replace the Lightning port with its USB 2.0 speeds (480Mbps/0.48Gbps), and it will “be made of titanium”, something that comes with significant strength and price increases.
10/12 Update: Speaking to me, LeaksApplePro has provided more information about Apple’s use of titanium in the iPhone 15 range. Following a recent leak from ShrimpApplePro, a well-known industry insider, that Apple will bring titanium to all iPhone 15 modelsnot just the iPhone 15 Ultra, LeaksApplePro says this is categorically wrong.
“That’s not true,” LeaksApplePro argues, saying it will be “Ultra only (maybe the 15 Pro, but definitely not the 15 and 15 Plus).”
Given the cost of titanium, this makes sense. Because it is 3-4 times stronger than the stainless steel used in the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max, some might argue that this lowers the price since less will be needed to make a chassis that is just as strong, if not more. .
The problem with that argument is that titanium is currently priced at $35-50 per kilogram, compared to $1-1.50 per kilogram for stainless steel. That’s a colossal difference and surely puts it out of reach for standard iPhones.
As such, in my opinion, the question becomes more about whether Apple will benchmark its supply chain against three different case materials (aluminum for the standard models, stainless steel for the iPhone 15 Pro, and titanium for the iPhone 15 Ultra) or whether will keep two. . This would likely mean an upgrade to stainless steel for the standard models, because downgrading the iPhone 15 Pro is unlikely to be an option.
December 11 Update: LeaksApplePro has returned with additional information today.
First, the tipster answered my question about Apple’s choice of chassis materials. Interestingly, the answer is that Apple currently plans to use all three: aluminum for the two standard iPhone 15 models, stainless steel for the iPhone 15 Pro, and titanium to be reserved for the Ultra.
LeaksApplePro adds the caveat, “that’s what we know for now.” This is fair given how early the iPhone 15 range is in its development cycle, but it’s interesting to see the company add this complexity to its supply chain.
Second, LeaksApplePro claims that the repeatedly leaked dual front-facing cameras are most likely exclusive to the iPhone 15 Ultra.
I suspect this is not just from a cost perspective, but more than likely it comes down to physical size. Dynamic Island already takes up significant space on the 6.1-inch iPhone 14 Pro screen. Adding a second camera would leave almost no room for any other icons, many of which (time, cellular/WiFi signal, notifications, etc.) users find essential.
By comparison, the second camera would be considered a luxury addition. By contrast, a 6.5-inch iPhone 15 Ultra can house the camera and retain the same number of icons as an iPhone 15 Pro. It remains to be seen if Apple will make the screen even bigger to live up to the name. Ultra and its big Android rivals.
And there is a final fascinating piece of information: “Apple is only considering one color for the iPhone 15 Ultra, and it is the same color as the Apple Watch Ultra. [silver]. I don’t know if that will be the only color available in September, or if there will be more, but to this day none of my sources have seen any color other than the same color as the Apple Watch Ultra.”
Yes, it looks like the iPhone 15 Ultra will push iPhone prices higher than ever before, but it also looks like the most exciting and ambitious smartphone Apple has released in years.
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