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Apple’s Newest iPhone Could Be Harder To Buy Than Ever Before

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Eric Lieberman Managing Editor
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Prominent analyst Ming-Chi Kuo of KGI Securities says he expects there to be a “severe short supply” of the iPhone 8 “for a while,” according to Street Insider.

While concerns that Apple won’t be able to fulfill the demand for its highly anticipated products usually surface in advance of the launch, in regards to the latest iPhone, set to be released Tuesday, Kuo seems to think that this delay will become problematic.

Some informed estimates place the cost of the prospective iPhone 8 at $1,500, with the ostensibly more reasonable predictions near the $1,000 to $1,200 mark. (The official name of the soon-to-be-released iPhone is not yet known, but is referred to as the iPhone 8 herein for clarification purposes).

The high cost is likely due to the OLED (organic light-emitting diode) display anticipated for the newest iPhone, which is a relatively advanced feature for a smartphone, or most electronic devices in general.

“It sounds to me like the OLED iPhone is a phone which Apple can’t make 40 million of per quarter, at least not today,” technology blogger John Gruber wrote in July while speculating about potential price points. “And if that’s true, that means it should be more expensive. Not should in any moral sense, but simply because that’s how the principle of supply and demand works. When supply is constrained and demand is high, prices go higher. The higher prices alleviate demand.” (RELATED: Potentially Leaked iPhone 8 Images Appear To Show Touch Sensor On Back Of Device)

Gruber at the time was basing a lot of his own analysis off of Kuo’s, who was once referred to as “the best Apple analyst on the planet.” Kuo has reported on the likelihood of iPhone 8 part shortages before, but his latest remarks come just a day before the formal announcement.

“Due to component supply constraints, we estimate current production of the OLED iPhone at less than 10k units per day, which means the model will remain in severe short supply for a while,” Kou said, according to Street Insider. “Furthermore, we estimate that the gold version of the OLED iPhone will encounter some production problems and will initially be available only in extremely low volume. There is even a chance that the gold version will go on sale at a later date than the other versions.” (RELATED: In Honor Of The Soon-To-Be-Released iPhone 8, Here’s A Look Back At Every iPhone)

Kuo added that consumers may be hurt by the dearth of new iPhones, but “shipment delays will have a limited impact on the shares of Apple and its supply chain members.”

The Daily Caller News Foundation reached out to Apple to see if the company was worried about potential supply scarcity, but received no comment in time for publication.

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Tags : apple iphone
Eric Lieberman