Author/ IT Times reporter Shen Yibin
Editors: Wang Xin, Sun Yan
Recently, "iPhone 14 Pro price reduction of 700 yuan" and other related topics rushed to Weibo hot search, less than half a year on sale iPhone 14 series ushered in a big price reduction.
After visiting a number of Apple directly-operated stores and authorized stores in Shanghai, the "IT Times" reporter found that the directly operated stores still maintained the prices on the official website and did not reduce prices; The iPhone 14 in the authorized store has a decrease of 600~800 yuan. The internal documents of Apple's authorized dealer SUNPIE, iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max were lowered by 700 yuan, which lasted from February 5 to April 1, covering all stores, and the news was also confirmed during the visit.
In addition, e-commerce platforms such as JD.com and Taobao, which are the most sensitive to price, as well as the sales channels of the three major operators, also participated in the price reduction, with a decrease of 600~900 yuan. According to the different subsidies of each platform, Meituan reduced the price by 1,000 yuan, and Pinduoduo reduced the price by up to 1,600 yuan.
Channel insiders said that the current retail price of some models such as iPhone 14 Pro Max 256G is close to the purchase price, and it is not far from the phenomenon of "batch zero upside down".
The maximum offline price reduction is 800 yuan; The highest online price reduction is 1600 yuan
On the afternoon of February 13, standing across the street, you can see the crowded scene in Apple's Nanjing East Road direct store. "Our directly operated stores have not reduced prices, and we have not received notice at this time." The salesman said that the starting price of iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max is still 7999 yuan and 8999 yuan.
Subsequently, the "IT Times" reporter visited 5 Apple authorized stores such as Raffles City North Bund, Shanghai Jiuguang Center, Daning International Business Plaza, etc., and the iPhone 14 series has been replaced with a brand new price brand, with an average decrease of 600~800 yuan. Apple's authorized franchise stores in WeChat mini programs have directly advertised price reductions on the homepage.
The reporter found that each authorized store has different price reductions for different models. For example, the iPhone 14 Pro, Pro Max, and Plus in Shanghai Hisamitsu Center store are reduced by 800 yuan, and the price of the standard version model is reduced by 700 yuan; The iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max in Jiangqiao Wanda Store also reduced their prices by 800 yuan, while the Plus model and the standard version were reduced by 400 yuan and 300 yuan respectively.
"It's also the first time I've seen such a big price cut for Apple." The salesman of Apple's Shanghai Hisamitsu Center store revealed that after receiving the notice on February 5, the price began to be reduced by 700 yuan, and there was a 100 yuan promotion on Valentine's Day, a total of 800 yuan.
Apple Global Harbor direct store staff said that authorized stores are operated by distributors with their own sales strategies, and if there is a collective price reduction, it must be officially licensed. However, it is recommended that consumers ask whether the iPhone model purchased is the same as Apple's own official channel purchase, supporting 14-day no reason return and 1-year warranty.
In addition to offline authorized store price reductions, major e-commerce platforms will not miss such a large promotion. E-commerce platforms such as Jingdong and Taobao have reduced their prices by 800 yuan in the form of discount coupons, while Meituan has dropped 1,000 yuan. Pinduoduo has the largest price reduction among all e-commerce platforms, taking the iPhone 14 Pro Max as an example, the "10 billion subsidy" of 1400 yuan, plus the 200 yuan discount provided by the store, can reach a reduction of 1600 yuan.
"I knew that the price of (iPhone) 14 had dropped so much, so I was not in a hurry to change the 13, and now I feel a loss." In early September 2022, fruit fan Zhou Yi (pseudonym) spent 7,549 yuan on Pinduoduo to buy a 256G iPhone13 Pro. He once believed that buying the previous generation of models before Apple's new machine was on sale was the most cost-effective, and he thought that it was 1250 yuan cheaper than the official website to win the iPhone 13 Pro was already a "big profit", but he did not expect that this time the iPhone 14 Pro was greatly reduced, cheaper than the iPhone 13 Pro.
According to the authorized store of the e-commerce platform, the price of the iPhone 14 Pro 256G model remains at about 7499 yuan, which is not only 1400 yuan cheaper than the official website, but also 50 yuan cheaper than the iPhone 13 Pro purchased by Zhou Yi last year.
Discounted profits of channel vendors; The retail price is approaching the purchase price
In 2022, the iPhone 14 series has been seriously "polarized" since its release. The iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus are not "welcomed" by consumers. At the same time, the hot-selling iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max were temporarily out of stock due to supply chain problems, which eventually led to iPhone revenue of $65.775 billion in the fourth quarter, down 8% year-on-year.
Global mobile phone consumption is sluggish, and Apple, which dominates one side, cannot stand it.
According to data released by market research institute Canalys, in the fourth quarter of 2022, the global market shipment of iPhones was 73.2 million units, down 11% year-on-year; In the Chinese market, iPhone shipments were 16.4 million units, down 24% year-on-year. Jefferies analyst Edison Lee said: "The discount seems to be larger than the 3%~4% we found in January, reflecting signs of weak demand. ”
Source: Canalys
The strategy of small profits and quick sales and price assurance has made this number one brand grasp the mobile phone market accept reality. So, how effective is it?
"Since the price of the iPhone 14 was reduced, sales have increased by nearly 50% compared to last month." Wang Ming (pseudonym), the head of an Apple channel vendor, told the "IT Times" reporter that in fact, as early as January this year, Apple has quietly reduced the price, when the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus price reduction of 600 yuan, by early February, the price of Pro and Pro Max models also began to fall.
"Although the sales volume has gone up, the machine that could earn three or four hundred yuan before is now only earning one or two hundred, which is a small profit and high sales." Wang Ming took the iPhone 14 Pro Max 256G model as an example, for example, before the price reduction, the bottom price of the channel to the agent was about 9500 yuan, compared with the official website price of 9899 yuan, you can earn about 400 yuan, the price after the price reduction is 9099 yuan, and the bottom price of the channel provider to the agent has also dropped to about 8900 yuan, compared with more than 200 yuan.
The smallest wholesale and retail price difference is the iPhone 14 Pro 256G model. The price after it is reduced by 800 yuan is 8099 yuan, compared with the channel price of about 7900 yuan, it can only earn more than 100 yuan.
Will the iPhone 15 be more fragrant than the 14?
"It's okay for the iPhone to go up, in fact, Apple has the ability to convince consumers to pay more for the iPhone." Apple CEO Tim Cook said in the first quarter of 2023 earnings call that the iPhone has become an "indispensable" part of many people's lives, and users are willing to pay more for a better experience.
On the one hand, the price reduction turmoil of iPhone 14, on the other hand, Cook's price increase "declaration", iPhone 15 has become the object of public attention since it was in the "mother's womb".
According to industry news, the iPhone 15 Pro model will bring six exclusive functions. First and foremost is the new gold that has been on the hot search. From the green of the iPhone 13 to the dark purple of the iPhone 14, the color matching has become the focus of fruit fans while also becoming a major selling point of Apple's new machine. According to foreign media reports, the new gold of the iPhone 15 Pro will be lighter than the iPhone 14 Pro. At the same time, the appearance will adopt a curved design similar to the Apple Watch to further narrow the phone border.
Secondly, some models of the iPhone 15 series will use the A17 chip created by the 3nm process, and the new processor is upgraded based on the A16 bionic chip, and the performance and endurance will be strengthened. In addition, the Lightning interface, which has been "troubled" by users for a long time, will be replaced with the mainstream Type-C, and the versatility will be strengthened.
Tianfeng International analyst Guo Mingxi said that in the second half of this year, the highest-end iPhone 15 series models (iPhone 15 Pro Max or 15 Ultra) will be equipped with periscope cameras, and the market expects that periscope lenses will be used by more iPhone machines in the future, becoming a trend of lens upgrades in 2023~2024.
After years of being questioned by the industry and consumers about the lack of innovation, the burden on the shoulders of the iPhone 15 is becoming heavier and heavier.