Apple could deliver its first new devices of 2018 next month. A new report claims the company is gearing up to launch a new iPhone, iPad and MacBook in March. We’ll have to wait longer for an Apple Watch Series 4, however.
Despite strong demand for iPhone X when it launched last November, the device certainly did not spark the upgrade “super-cycle” many analysts predicted. In fact, iPhone sales for the first quarter of 2018 fell year-over-year.
Apple suppliers suffer
As a result, Apple cut orders for the second quarter of the year. They almost certainly weren’t slashed in half, as some reports claimed, but they probably aren’t what Cupertino was hoping for. Now Apple suppliers are feeling the strain.
For some, however, Apple’s other manufacturing needs will make up lost revenue. Career Technology, E&R Engineering, ShunSin Technology and Superior Plating Technology are seeing increasing orders for new devices coming next month.
Superior Plating Technology in particular will enjoy “sizable” orders from Apple for new iPhone, iPad and MacBook components, Digitimes reports. All three devices are expected to make their debuts “starting in March 2018.”
This will help Superior Plating Technology return to profitability after suffering losses in the first three quarters of 2017. Apple Watch component suppliers are also said to be receiving increased orders now, but a new device isn’t expected until later.
Don’t get your hopes up
We should remind you that Digitimes reports must be taken with a pinch of salt. The publication has a spotty track record when it comes to Apple rumors. There are times when its claims are accurate, but more often than not, they turn out to be false.
It’s feasible that a new iPad and a new MacBook could arrive next month, with both now ripe for a refresh. The only iPhone that Apple would refresh this early in the year is iPhone SE, but a new model isn’t expected until mid-2018.
Killian Bell is a freelance writer based in the U.K. He has an interest in all things tech and also covers Android over at CultofAndroid.com. You can follow him on Twitter via @killianbell.
2 responses to “Apple could launch a bunch of new devices next month”
“We should remind you that Digitimes reports must be taken with a pinch of salt”
A pinch of salt? Try the whole Dead Sea, plus Bonneville.
“In fact, iPhone sales for the first quarter of 2018 fell year-over-year.”
Actually, the rate of iPhone sales was HIGHER this quarter than it was last year!
iPhone sales hit 77.316 million units in Apple’s 91-day Q1 FY 2018 quarter. That compares with 78.29 million sales in the year-ago quarter.
But… Last year’s quarter extended over 98 days (14 weeks), while this year Apple saw a more traditional 91-day (13-week) quarter. That means Apple sold around 849,600 iPhones every day in Q1 FY 2018, in contrast to 798,877 iPhones it sold each day across Q1 FY 2017.
In other words, Apple sold iPhones in Q1 FY 2018 at a 6.35% FASTER rate than they did in Q1 FY 2017! Or, another way to put it, if this year’s 91 day Q1 was equal to the 98 days of last year’s Q1, the total count of iPhones sold would be 83,260,800 (Again, 6.35% MORE than last year!).
Some people are NOT accounting for the 1 week longer period for Q1 last year, and they are comparing “Apples to oranges”. ?