iPhone 8 production said to start early

“The supply chain focus remains on the tremendous anticipation for a iPhone 8/X super cycle intertwined with some mid-year transition hurdles,” BlueFin said. “Interestingly, our present reads suggest a 300% increase in iPhone 8/X builds in the June quarter, now sitting at 9M. As a result, overall June quarter builds have increased from 45M to 48M, with the sharp increase in iPhone 8 offset somewhat by modest declines in legacy models. In the past, builds of upcoming releases began in earnest early in the September quarter, so this is a departure from AAPL’s normal build cadence.”

Why build the iPhone 8 early?

There are several reasons Apple might want to begin manufacturing early this year. First, it might want to make sure there’s enough stock for launch, which hasn’t been the case for the past several new iPhone introductions. Stock of the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus was still fairly limited for some models even moving into the holidays, for example. Second, Apple may want to take the extra time to work out any kinks in the manufacturing process, something that’s worth considering if it’s really going to introduce a brand new iPhone 8 design. It’ll also help Apple avoid Samsung’s Galaxy Note 7 battery disaster, I imagine. Finally, Apple may want to start building iPhone 8 units earlier in the off chance that it decides to launch the phone before September. I don’t think that’s very likely, though.

Concept images above created by Moh Slah.

Article source: https://www.technobuffalo.com/2017/02/06/iphone-8-production/