Apple’s next-gen iPhone hasn’t even been announced yet but some Apple fans are already lamenting the fact that it might be called the iPhone 13. According to a SellCell survey of approximately 3,000 iPhone users, nearly 20% of respondents indicated that the iPhone 13 might turn them off due to the superstitious nature of the number 13.
It’s essentially a bit of popular folklore at this point, but the number 13 has historically been considered unlucky across several countries and cultures. For this very reason, you may have noticed that some tall buildings and hotels don’t have a designated 13th floor and instead label the 13th floor as the 14th.
So what should we take away from this survey?
Honestly, not too much.
Color me pessimistic, but the notion that calling Apple’s next-gen iPhone the iPhone 13 will have any discernible impact on sales seems utterly fanciful. And given the nature of human psychology, it wouldn’t surprise me if many of the people who said the iPhone 13 name might give them pause were primed by the question itself which asked “Could naming the next Apple smartphone ‘iPhone 13’ put you off as the number 13 can be deemed unlucky?”
It’s essentially a leading question and I’d surmise that the outcome would have been much different if the question were phrased like this: “Would you be hesitant to buy a device named the iPhone 13?”
Interestingly enough, some Apple fans, even before the survey was released, have said that the next-gen iPhone should be called the iPhone 14, or perhaps more simply, iPhone. Truth be told, this argument is a bit silly to me. Apple has a long history with its iPhone naming structure, and while the company shouldn’t adhere to it blindly, deviating from it due to a somewhat obscure superstition seems unwise.
According to the survey, respondents came up with all sorts of ideas for what Apple’s next-gen iPhone should be called. While 26% said it should be called the iPhone 13, a whopping 38% said it should be called iPhone (2021). 7% of respondents, meanwhile, said Apple should skip the iPhone 13 name and instead call it the iPhone 14. And lastly, and perhaps illustrating why some surveys shouldn’t be taken seriously, 16% of respondents said Apple should call its next-gen smartphone the iPhone 21 because it’s going to be released in, wait for it, 2021.
As for other interesting tidbits from the survey, 64% of respondents said they’re going to wait for the iPhone 13 to launch before considering an upgrade. This shouldn’t come as much of a surprise since most people understandably want to see what new features Apple brings to the table before committing to such a big purchase.
And lastly, when asked which iOS 15 features they were most excited about, the most popular choice was Apple’s upgraded wallet app with support for digital ID cards. The next most popular choices included enhanced Spotlight search, the ability to track lost iPhones even after they’ve been turned off, SharePlay, and the ability to extract text from images.
A rundown of every iPhone 13 feature we can expect to see can be seen over here.
