Why Apple May Release an Even More Expensive iPhone

Apple launched the original iPhone in 2007 at a starting price of $499. Since then, the price slowly crept up, and by 2017, one needed to shell out $999 for the flagship iPhone. Fortunately, the pricing has remained the same for the most part, at least in the United Dates since then.

In 2023, the iPhone 14 Pro still starts at the same price as the iPhone X did back in 2017, but everything suggests that we’ll see a significant price increase from Apple sooner rather than later.

Tim Cook Doesn’t Rule Out a More Expensive iPhone

Like all publicly traded companies, Apple has to hold frequent earning calls with its investors. Their purpose is to inform those interested in where the company stands and the direction it is going in. No major exclusives usually come out of these meetings, but they sometimes give us clues as to what Apple is planning.

Precisely, at the Q1 2023 earnings call, Apple CEO Tim Cook explained that consumers were willing to pay more to get the best iPhone available. This could point to a generalized price increase of the company’s flagship device, but for now, it’s only speculation, as Apple has not confirmed anything at the moment.

In response to a question from Bank of America analyst Wamsi Mohan, asking whether Apple could sustain the increasing prices it charges for iPhones, Tim Cook said:

I wouldn’t want to predict, but I would say that the smartphone — for us, the iPhone — has become so integral into people’s lives. It contains their contacts and their health information and their banking information and their smart home and so many different parts of their lives. It’s the payment vehicle for many people. And so I think people are willing to really stretch to get the best they can afford in that category.

Prices Haven’t Increased Since 2017

Apple has long been taking on the rising costs of production, transportation, personnel, etc., in addition to inflation, especially in 2022. Rumors had suggested that the iPhone 14 Pro would go up in price, but that didn’t happen in the end.

You have to hand it to Apple that even when the rest of the companies in the field were raising their prices, Apple did not do so. In fact, from a purely economic standpoint, it lowered them. That’s truly remarkable.

The iPhone X launched at $999 in 2017, but if you take inflation into account, the iPhone 14 Pro, which launched in September 2022, should have cost $1201.33. This means that in economic terms, Apple has dropped the price of the iPhone 14 Pro by $202.33 compared to the iPhone X. Good job there, Apple.

Regardless, it seems inevitable that, sooner or later, prices will increase, just as Apple hiked prices for its services, especially if we consider the latest rumors about an iPhone 16 Ultra or the use of titanium as the main material in future models. Tim Cook’s statement helps support this theory, as it seems like the CEO is just setting the path for a future price increase.

iPhone 16 Ultra Could Be the Priciest iPhone Yet

In a Bloomberg post, Mark Gurman, one of the most reputable reporters in the industry, stated that Apple is considering launching an iPhone 16 Ultra, which is superior in features and price to the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max.

Among the key points that would differentiate the iPhone 16 Ultra from the rest of the lineup, we could see even more camera improvements, a faster chip, a larger screen, and perhaps a portless design, according to Gurman.

It would be the most expensive iPhone in history and would have features that would differentiate it quite a bit from the rest. There’s not much information about this “ultra” iPhone, but from the looks of it, this could be one of the ways Apple fights price increases and inflation.

In a way, this move would make quite a bit of sense. Neither the mini nor the Plus variants of the iPhones have performed well. In fact, the iPhone 12 mini sales were a disaster, so it would make sense to transition to a lineup including the iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Pro, iPhone 16 Pro Max, and iPhone 16 Ultra. However, that’s just pure speculation on our part. So, take it with a grain of salt.

The Future of the iPhone Looks Expensive

Tim Cook is confident that consumers will pay more for the best iPhone they can get. A more expensive iPhone 16 Ultra could make up for the reduction in profit margins Apple faced in recent years with the rest of the lineup.

Remember that these are just rumors, and nothing is confirmed until Apple says so. But it’s true that considering the increase in production costs, inflation, and Gurman’s excellent track record, everything points to an expensive future for iPhone users.