Apple Rumoured To Cut iPhone 13 Production Due to Weakening Demand

Last Updated on December 3, 2021 by Nachiket Mhatre

It might be hard to guess what consumers are shopping for this Christmas, but it most likely isn’t an iPhone 13 if Bloomberg is to be believed. Apple has purportedly warned its component suppliers of weakening demand for the iPhone 13 smartphone line-up.

The tech giant had originally projected to manufacture 90 million units across iPhone 13, iPhone 13 Pro, iPhone 13 Pro Max, and iPhone 13 mini models. However, worsening chip shortages had eventually caught up with Apple’s robust production and inventory planning, thereby forcing the company to reduce production targets by 10 million units.

The iPhone maker had initially hoped to make up that exact production shortfall by early 2022, and had accordingly advised production partners to expect the original 90 million target. However, unnamed insider sources privy to Bloomberg suggest that Apple is no longer optimistic of attaining those production numbers.

The slump in demand is most likely a result of the iPhone 13 line-up being widely considered an incremental update to the wildly popular iPhone 12 series. Although the iPhone 13 saw substantial improvements in the camera and battery endurance, the core aspects of performance, display, and design only received minor improvements.

The utility of upgrading to a new iPhone is tied to the very visibility of the upgrade when you filter out the technically savvy niche that cares about specifications. In other words, the iPhone 13’s largely unchanged design makes it almost indistinguishable from the outgoing model. That makes it less appealing as an upgrade for those who do it as a statement of style or status.

Moreover, production delays might also push some adopters to hold off for next year’s iPhone models. This is especially true given the ever-steady stream of leaks and rumours pointing to the next iPhone iteration being a substantial improvement over the iPhone 13. The veracity of the rumours notwithstanding, it is normal for buyers to hold out for upcoming variants in a product category that sees yearly updates like clockwork.

However, it’s not like Apple is in trouble. The iPhone maker is still on the trajectory to achieving sales targets amounting a massive $117.9 billion in the last quarter of this calendar year. That’s nevertheless an increase of six percent over the baseline expectations.