iPhone XR demand may have taken Apple by surprise

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iPhone XR
The iPhone XR looks set to be crazy popular.
Photo: Apple

Apple clearly had some sense that its 6.1-inch LCD iPhone XR would be big, since it gave it the main event spot in last week’s Apple media event.

But it may have been surprised by just how big it is, since a new report suggests that Apple is revising the ratio of its total iPhone orders for December — so that the iPhone XR makes up more than 50 percent of its handsets manufactured.

Digitimes reveals that that shipments of the iPhone XR are supposedly expected to hit 20 million units in October. This momentum is set to continue in 2019, as evidenced by the December order revision.

The reason for this may well be because of the device’s likely popularity in China, thanks to its dual-SIM support. That’s despite the fact that the $749 starting price makes it higher than the average $699 price for a top-end smartphone from one of China’s vendors. We guess this could also mean demand for the iPhone XS was lower than expected, as some analysts have suggested.

Tim Cook has long talked about how Apple views China as its future biggest markets. He has also said how Apple designs its products with the Chinese audience in mind.

Pre-orders for the iPhone XR begin October 19, and the device will hit shelves on October 26.

And as for the iPhone XS and XS Max

Today’s report notes that shipments of the iPhone XS Max are likely to maintain a rate of 4 to 5 million units shipping per month. This adds up to around 20 percent of total shipments of new iPhones. It goes on to observe that, “Shipments of the iPhone XS will be more vulnerable to market conditions and are expected to gradually lose its momentum beginning in November, the sources added.”

Which new iPhone, if any, do you plan to buy? Have you pre-ordered one? Let us know in the comments below.

Source: Digitimes

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