Prior to its official November 3rd launch date, Australians will be able to pre-order the new Apple iPhone X at 6.01pm AEDT tonight – speculation is, supply will be in significantly “more” limited supply than usual, following reports of production bottlenecks.
The tenth-anniversary device holds considerable high stakes for Apple, following reports that initial sales of the iPhone 8 & 8 Plus are the lowest of any new Apple smartphone released in recent years.
KGI Securities Analyst and ‘Apple insider’, Ming-Chi Kuo, states there will only be 2 – million iPhone X devices globally available on launch day.
Kuo also estimates that there will be 25 million to 30 million iPhone X units globally available for the Christmas quarter.
The figure is significantly lower than the 74.5 million iPhone handsets sold during the December quarter last year.
For die-hard Apple loyalists, such a supply constraint is likely to birth an intense carnage of sorts. Getting their hands on the tenth anniversary device quickly, will likely culminate in ability to pre-order within minutes of opening.
Bloomberg anticipates that demand and supply will sync together in about three or four months, following its official launch.
Delivery times are also likely to lengthen as the company’s initial supply of iPhones Xs are scooped up.
Previous reports state that the new iPhone X has notably impacted sales of the previously launched iPhone 8.
A survey conducted by brokerage Bernstein forecasts that demand for the iPhone X would be “substantial”, but “not exceptional”. A quarter of the individuals surveyed stated their intention to buy the phone.
Just a week before the official launch, the daughter of an Apple engineer filmed herself with the new iPhone X, where she gave a thorough overview of device’s features. She remarked on the “insane” camera and demonstrated the phone’s animated emoji technology, based on an imprint of her own face.
The video was swiftly deleted, just hours after it went live.
The iPhone X will debut new facial recognition technology, replacing the ‘home button’ – production concerning the feature has been deemed a major cause of manufacturing delays.
Previous reports from ChannelNews state that Apple requested its suppliers to reduce the accuracy of its facial recognition technology, to ease the production process.
