Apple industry analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said on Sunday that demand for the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max has been “lower than expected” following the opening of pre-orders in the United States and several other countries. Kuo says he bases his comments on a “supply chain survey” and shipping estimates listed on Apple’s online store.
Kuo estimates that pre-order sales of all four iPhone 16 models reached about 37 million units in the first weekend, down nearly 13% compared to first-weekend sales of the iPhone 15 series last year. The well-connected analyst said a key factor in the sales decline is lower demand for the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max models. First-weekend sales of the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max are estimated to be down 27% and 16%, respectively, compared to iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max sales during the equivalent pre-order period last year.
Kuo says that while iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus models have seen more robust demand than last year’s iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus during the first weekend of sales.
Kuo says that the lower-than-expected demand for the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max could be due to the delayed rollout of Apple Intelligence features, which will not be available when the handsets hit shelves and begin being delivered on Friday. The first Apple Intelligence features will not rollout until the release of iOS 18.1, which is currently in beta testing and won’t be released to the public until October. The analyst also points to the iPhone’s “intense competition” in China.