Apple would have certainly preferred to launch the iPhone X alongside its brand new iPhone 8 models, but Apple’s next-gen smartphone is understandably a tad more complex to manufacture at scale. Not only does the iPhone X feature an OLED display that is more intricate than the OLED displays Samsung manufactures for its own devices, a recent report from analyst Ming-Chi Kuo adds that the components that comprise the iPhone X’s Face ID system are incredibly complex and are temporarily keeping production figures low.
Once Apple gets a handle on production, though, it stands to reason that iPhone X sales will skyrocket. To this point, Kuo, in a note to investors obtained by StreetInsider, that pre-order demand for the iPhone X may very well fall in the 40 to 50 million range. This should be particularly encouraging news for Apple in light of reports that iPhone 8 sales haven’t exactly lived up to sales figures put up by previous models. Disappointing iPhone 8 sales can, of course, be attributed to the forthcoming — and much more compelling — iPhone X. What’s more, Apple has done an uncharacteristically poor job of informing prospective buyers how the iPhone 8 differs from last year’s iPhone 7.
As for an impending iPhone X sales boom, Kuo’s note reads in part:
iPhone X is seen as the first model refresh since iPhone 6 from 2014, offering a revamped form factor design. We think Apple’s (US) core fans and some iPhone 6 and 6s users are willing to pay a hefty price for this upgraded device. As regards Face ID, we’re now convinced that TrueDepth camera (3D sensing) creates a far stronger user experience than those of Apple’s rivals. We also think that if Apple can effectively communicate this message of an exceptional user experience before preorders begin and prior to launch, it will go a long way to addressing some concerns that may hold back potential demand, thereby boosting preorder momentum.
If Face ID proves to be an able replacement for Touch ID, it stands to reason that the iPhone X will usher in a gigantic refresh cycle later this year. Incidentally, Kuo maintains that mass production on the iPhone X will begin in earnest sometime next month. Nonetheless, Kuo anticipates that iPhone X supply will be extremely low well into 2018. While production issues will inevitably have an impact on Apple’s iPhone sales during the upcoming holiday quarter, those sales will simply be spread out over the course of a few months instead.
Barring any changes, iPhone X pre-orders are slated to open up on October 27, with deliveries expected to commence in early November.
