Apple has cut production of the 6.7-inch iPhone 14 Plus due to low sales. The device was introduced in September alongside the iPhone 14 Pro.
When the iPhone 14 Plus went on sale last month, many assumed buyers would be in for a phone with a larger 6.7-inch display and a battery that lasted several days on a single charge. In fact, experts predict that the $899 iPhone model will sell more during the holidays due to the popularity and lower price of the bigger phone. But that prediction seems to have been amplified with new reports that Apple has cut production of the iPhone 14 Plus due to cooling demand for larger-screen phones. If it’s a case of demand mismatch, Apple has cut production drastically in the past and cut parts orders when some iPhone models don’t sell well.
Here are three times Apple has had to cut production when certain iPhone models received a lukewarm reception from consumers:
Iphone 5c
Calling the iPhone 5c a “flop” might be an exaggeration, but yeah, that iPhone model wasn’t the huge success Apple had hoped for. A few weeks after the launch, several publications started reporting that Cupertino had cut production of the iPhone 5c due to low demand. The iPhone 5c isn’t exactly a “budget” iPhone aimed at emerging markets, but the mainstream media has drawn up the story of a cheap headset. The iPhone 5c is no ordinary device.
What worked against the iPhone 5c was the brand and people’s perception of the iPhone. The lack of a ‘premium’ build and its list price of $549, $100 less than the flagship iPhone 5s, hurt sales. Although the iPhone 5c is marketed as a new phone, it is not a flagship device. In contrast, iPhone 5s sales are said to have skyrocketed, proving once again that Apple consumers want nothing less than a premium experience.
iphone 8
Within weeks of the launch of the iPhone 8, analysts and insiders started speculating about the handset’s future. This was followed by reports that Apple has cut production of the iPhone 8 by 50 percent. The iPhone 8 was crushed between the next-generation iPhone X and the older iPhone 7 and Apple was to be blamed for that. The iPhone 8 repeats the design first seen in 2014’s iPhone 6. There is nothing new in the iPhone 8 and users are aware of it. Apple used this strategy of iterative upgrades twice before with the iPhone 6s and iPhone 7, but it failed to find takers a third time.
iphone 12 mini
When Apple unveiled the iPhone 12 mini, it started a new strategy for the company. The 5.4-inch compact phone is a genius idea on paper. But after a few months, questions arose as to how effective this strategy was from a commercial perspective. Rumors of Apple cutting production of the iPhone 12 mini soon began to gain steam, with a report claiming that planned production of the smallest iPhone has been cut by 70 percent.
The iPhone 12 Mini has its share of fans, and it’s easy to tell why. The iPhone range has won over a niche segment of consumers who want a flagship-grade small phone. It never went mainstream the way the iPhone 12 or iPhone 13 did, and there are many reasons for that.
