We're only a few months away from the launch of the iPhone 15, and the rumour mill is already working overtime to churn out leaks and tidbits about the next generation of Apple smartphones. So far, so exciting – rumours suggest we're in for an awesome camera and, finally, the addition of USB-C. But the latest price rumour isn't such good news.
New reports suggest that the production cost of the entire iPhone 15 line up is set to increase, with the standard model going up around 12%, and the Pro a huge 20%. And these changes will almost certainly be reflected in the retail price. If you were holding out, maybe it's time to check out those iPhone 14 deals.
A fan-made render of the rumoured iPhone 15 Pro (Image credit: 4RMD)
Analyst Dan Ives recently told CNBC that "ASPs that are increasing" (average selling price) along with the fact that over 250M iPhones haven't been upgraded in over 4 years could mean that the iPhone 15 could be a "trophy case moment' for Apple. In other words, the company could stand to make a lot of money from this year's line up.
But why the rising price? We've already heard this year that the iPhone 15 line up could cost Apple more to produce, with one noted Apple leaker claiming (below) this to be thanks to rising costs from semiconductor maker TSMC.
Compared to the iPhone 14 series, the production cost of the iPhone 15 base model is expected to increase by around 12% and the iPhone 15 Pro model by around 20%.TSMC fab price hikes may be the main culprit pic.twitter.com/GovuLF27WCApril 26, 2023
For US iPhone fans, this could mark the first price rise since 2017, when the iPhone X launched. But while that might hurt, think of us poor EU folk, who saw prices rise significantly with the launch of the iPhone 14 last year. Indeed, yet another price hike could make those annual "sell a kidney to buy an iPhone" memes even more prescient. (We're not suggesting you sell a kidney to buy an iPhone. In fact, we'd avoid doing this.) In the US and UK, the iPhones 14 and 14 Pro start at $799 / £849 and $999 / £1,099 respectively.
iPhone prices rose in the EU last year, but the US hasn't seen a hike since 2017 (Image credit: Apple)
Time will tell what kind of price hike is in store, but any rise will certainly put a sting in the tail of the many awesome iPhone 15 rumours we've heard so far. If you don't fancy waiting to find out, check out the best iPhone 14 deals below.
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Daniel John is Senior News Editor at Creative Bloq. He reports on the worlds of art, design, branding and lifestyle tech (which often translates to tech made by Apple). He joined in 2020 after working in copywriting and digital marketing with brands including ITV, NBC, Channel 4 and more.
