Is iPhone 16 not selling well? Availability for employee discounts paints gloomy picture
The iPhone 16, revealed at what was perhaps the most boring Apple event ever, might be seeing poor sales already. This might be because AI is the only reason for buying an iPhone 16 — with said AI not even being out yet — or it may have to do with other factors. Apple analyst Ming Chi Kuo and Bloomberg’s Apple insider Mark Gurman gave their thoughts regarding recent sales.
Kuo, renowned for providing accurate insights into Apple’s business, claims that the new iPhone is already available for purchase by Apple employees. For context, employees can purchase the newest iPhone at an employee discount each year. Kuo says that, before now, employees have had to wait several weeks before they could put in their discounted order.
Apple employees can already purchase the iPhone 16 with their employee discount. Typically, employees have had to wait several weeks after the release of new iPhone models before being able to buy. This could be another sign that the early demand for the iPhone 16 is below…
— 郭明錤 (Ming-Chi Kuo) (@mingchikuo) September 18, 2024
This also tracks with Kuo’s previous claims of demand being lower than expected for Apple’s newest phones. The iPhone 16 reveal was so underwhelming that Apple stock began dropping when Tim Cook announced it. While the iPhone 16 features a new camera control button, I also found it to be a forgettable upgrade. Perhaps sales will pick up once Apple Intelligence finishes rolling out some time next year.
All of this will start coming out starting next month. | Video credit — Apple
Mark Gurman responded directly to Kuo, both confirming and denying the claims. Gurman says that the gap for employees to become eligible for purchasing the newest iPhone hasn’t been as long as several weeks “for a while”.
However, Gurman did acknowledge that this year employees were allowed to buy the iPhone 16 at the same time as regular customers. According to him this did, in fact, indicate decreased demand. At least for now.
Does Apple’s AI bring enough to the table to justify an upgrade? We rated Apple Intelligence features so you can know for sure. If the iPhone 16 seems like a waste of money, you might want to wait for the modern revamped iPhone SE reportedly coming out next year.
Or perhaps jump ship and give the Galaxy S25 series a try. We promise we’ll let you rearrange the home screen.
However, Gurman did acknowledge that this year employees were allowed to buy the iPhone 16 at the same time as regular customers. According to him this did, in fact, indicate decreased demand. At least for now.
Or perhaps jump ship and give the Galaxy S25 series a try. We promise we’ll let you rearrange the home screen.
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