Status: 27.09.2021 3:59 p.m.
Apple customers will have to wait longer for the new iPhone this fall than usual. The reasons are disrupted supply chains and high demand. There are also new production losses at several suppliers.
According to industry observers, the delivery times of the flagship models of Apple’s new iPhone 13 are currently longer than they have been in years. A month’s waiting time and more are now common, according to analysts from JP Morgan and Credit Suisse. In the US, which accounts for more than a third of iPhone sales, the delivery time for the new devices was 19 to 34 days in the second week of September, compared to 7 to 20 days in the first week – both longer than waiting times for the iPhone 12. The entry-level model of the iPhone 13, on the other hand, is available two weeks after ordering.
In this country too, fans of the high-quality devices have to be patient. Anyone who ordered the iPhone 13 Pro on the Apple homepage at the end of last week will not have their device in their hands until October 12, 2021 at the earliest. According to the Californian manufacturer, it should arrive at home no later than October 19th.
“Robust Demand”
Industry experts regard the waiting time for the new Apple products as an indicator of their success with end customers. There is a “robust demand” for the devices, said JP Morgan analyst Samik Chatterjee of the news agency Reuters. However, the supply chains are disrupted worldwide. This would mean that customers would have to wait a little longer for their orders than usual.
The Apple partners Verizon, Vodafone UK and Best Buy explained the delays with the high demand. Many users on social media also drew attention to the late deliveries.
Standstill due to lack of electricity
Several Apple suppliers have just had to stop parts of their production. The supplier Unimicron said on Sunday that it had shut down production due to restrictions in the energy supply. In three of his factories in China he had to stop the production lines by Thursday. The Concraft Holding Group, which manufactures parts for iPhone headphones, among other things, will not produce anything until Thursday and will use parts from its warehouse to meet demand. The Apple supplier Foxconn even closes its tapes until Friday, as the daily newspaper “Nikkei” reported. The central government in Beijing wants to reduce electricity consumption in the People’s Republic by three percent this year in order to achieve the country’s climate targets.
The manufacturers assert that the effects are limited, as the production losses will be offset by higher production in other factories. Nevertheless, the compulsory breaks hit the corporations at an inopportune time. There has been a massive shortage of materials worldwide for months, with electronic components being particularly affected.