Apple boss warns 'unavoidable' price increase is coming for iPhones
Apple chief executive Tim Cook has warned that “unavoidable” price hikes are coming for customers, which could see the next iPhone cost up to $100 more than its predecessor.
Cook told the Wall Street Journal that Apple plans to raise the price on its products as the technology giant weathers the surging cost of memory and storage chips.
Apple chief executive Tim Cook said "unavoidable" price hikes are coming for his company's products. AP Photo/Noah Berger
His admission comes just months before the company is scheduled to launch the iPhone 18 in September.
“Unfortunately, price increases are unavoidable,” Cook told the WSJ.
“We’re doing our best to mitigate the huge increases that are being passed to us, and we’ve been trying to shield our customers from the increases, but the situation has become unsustainable.”
Cook did not reveal when the increases will kick in, which products would be impacted, nor how much prices will rise.
Technology expert Trevor Long told nine.com.au he expects Apple to raise the price of its iPhone 18 models by at least $50.
“Samsung announced earlier this year that they had to lift the price of their flagship phones for the entry-level by $150 and at the top-end of their range by $50. Frankly, I would expect Apple to be very similar,” Long said.
“They are not immune to these pressures of chip sets and storage prices so we could likely see a $50 to $100 price increase without any hesitation for the next iPhone in September.”
The most expensive option in Apple’s iPhone 17 range was the 1TB iPhone 17 Pro Max, priced at just under $3000.
The most affordable product in this generation was the basic iPhone 17, which began at $1397 for a 256GB device.
Tech expert Trevor Long expects the price of a basic iPhone to cost at least $100 more. Supplied
Soaring memory chip costs have been driven mostly by a surge in demand from artificial intelligence (AI) companies, which require staggering amounts of memory technology to operate.
The demand has outpaced supply in the global DRAM (dynamic random-access memory) market, putting pressure on prices across the technology industry.
“That demand is not diminishing... that demand is going to keep supply challenges on the manufacturers and consumers will always be the loser in that case,” Long said.
“We likely won’t see prices come down for years.”
Apple is expected to release a premium range of iPhone 18 devices and the company’s first-ever foldable iPhone in mid-to-late September.
Cook is stepping down on September 1 but will remain as chairman of Apple’s board of directors.
He will be replaced as CEO by Apple executive John Ternus.
Apple declined to comment when contacted by nine.com.au.
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