2017 was supposed to be Apple’s year.
As successful as Apple has been over the past decade, the 10th anniversary of the iPhone was meant to signal another leap forward for the company — another evolution over the original vision that would put Apple firmly back on top of the smartphone world. Instead, all we keep hearing about the iPhone 8 is its unsightly design, its sky-high price and the inevitability that it won’t release on time.
So despite all the hype, what are the chances that Apple doesn’t live up to expectations?
According to the Wall Street Journal, Wall Street’s hopes for a “supercycle” have dwindled somewhat in light of all the negative reports. Not only is there a chance that the iPhone 8 will miss the standard mid-to-late September release window, but the new components and features of the phone are expected to drive the price up to around $1,000, which would make it prohibitively expensive.
Even if Apple can somehow roll the iPhone 8 out on time, the company could face significant constraints when it comes to manufacturing enough phones to satisfy demand. In fact, Andy Hargreaves of KeyBanc Capital tells the WSJ that Apple needs to order the necessary chips for the fingerprint scanner under the display by next month to stand any chance of producing enough phones for the holidays.
Unfortunately, reports indicate that Apple hasn’t even got the feature working yet.
In response to all of this, the WSJ reports that “at least nine analysts over the past month have lowered their projected iPhone sales for the current fiscal year that ends in September.” They still expect the company to flourish in 2018, but even then, the loyalty of Apple’s most dedicated fans will be tested.
