Apple’s upcoming iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max models will likely be $100 to $200 more expensive than the current iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max models, says Tim Long, an analyst at British bank Barclays. Long bases his estimates on conversations with companies in the Asian supply chain.
In a research note this month, shared by MacRumors, Long said he expects the iPhone 15 Pro to be priced as much as $100 more than the iPhone 14 Pro, while the iPhone 15 Pro Max may carry a $100 to $200 premium over the iPhone 14 Pro Max. Long believes pricing will stand pat for the standard iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus models.
This means U.S. pricing for the iPhone 15 lineup could be as follows:
- iPhone 15: $799 (unchanged)
- iPhone 15 Plus: $899 (unchanged)
- iPhone 15 Pro: Up to $1,099 (up from $999)
- iPhone 15 Pro Max: Up to $1,299 (up from $1,099)
Earlier this week, we saw a report from Bloomberg that said Apple is “considering” raising the price for its upcoming iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max models. The report, which cites the usual “unnamed people familiar with the matter,” claims that despite a projected decline in smartphone sales, Apple plans to increase its overall revenue by raising the price of the two iPhone 15 Pro models.
We also saw a May rumor claiming Apple would use pricing as a way to separate the non-Pro and Pro devices since the non-Pro models will likely gain a number of features – including Dynamic Island and a 48-mp camera.
On Tuesday, Twitter user “RGcloudS” claimed that the iPhone 15 lineup will boast a glass-plastic hybrid lens with an ƒ/1.7 aperture. The hybrid lens will reportedly feature a single glass element and six plastic elements. The wide camera currently used across the iPhone 14 lineup has seven plastic lenses.
Other rumors suggest the iPhone 15 Pro Max will boast an upgraded Telephoto lens with periscope technology that enables up to 5-6x zoom without blur. The iPhone 14 Pro models are 3x. This feature is not expected to be limited to the iPhone 15 Pro Max this year, which could be part of the reason for the bigger price leap for the Pro Max. Long says the periscope lens will likely add around $50 to the iPhone 15 Pro Max’s manufacturing costs.
Any time we see price estimates like this for upcoming iPhone models, they should always be taken with a grain of your favorite salt-free seasoning. We won’t know anything for sure until Apple unveils the iPhone 15 lineup and announces pricing later this year.
Apple traditionally unveils its new iPhones in September, and we don’t expect this year to be any different, despite recent rumors of display-related manufacturing issues for the iPhone 15 Pro lineup.
In addition to camera improvements, Apple is expected to make several improvements to the iPhone 15 Pro lineup, including a USB-C port, a customizable Action button, a titanium frame, thinner display bezels, a faster A17 Bionic chip, increased RAM, WiFi 6E support, and more. The new features, combined with the current inflationary price pressure, could indeed lead to the rumored price increases. Such a price increase would be the first for the high-end iPhone models since the iPhone X and iPhone XS Max, which were priced at $999 and $1,099, respectively.
