With the release of the iPhone 8 on the horizon, many potential Apple consumers want one particularly important question answered…what will the iPhone 8 cost? There have been strong indications that the forthcoming Apple flagship will be a revolutionary mobile that redefines the whole iPhone series. But what impact will this have on the price of the device?
$1,000 rumor
The first thing to note is that the iPhone 8 cost has been estimated to be over $1,000 in some early reports on the matter. Precedent has already been set for this possibility, with the new Apple MacBooks being more expensive than previous releases in this product range.
This has led some to suggest that the highest-spec model of the iPhone 8 will be the first to break through the psychologically important $1,000 barrier. In some respects this would be a gamble for Apple, considering that the smartphone manufacturer faces increasingly strong competition from its great rival Samsung.
However, Apple is able to draw on an unparalleled level of both brand penetration and customer loyalty, which would mean that if the iPhone 8 is exciting enough it can absorb such a weighty price tag. Of all consumer electronic items, the iPhone series arguably has the most price inelasticity.
Apple source
The $1,000 price was broken by The Fast Company, with the rumor apparently emanating from “a source with knowledge of Apple’s plans”. With many such whispers originating from supply chain sources, this suggestion has now become part of iPhone 8 folklore, with most analysts believing that there will be one edition of the iPhone 8 that indeed exceeds the $1,000 price barrier.
However, the same source also indicated that Apple intends to launch three devices in the smartphone niche during the calendar year. The largest of these will be branded as the iPhone 8, and will feature a 5.8-inch screen. While two smaller variants will be branded as iPhone 7S upgrades, and will continue at the 5.5-inch and 4.7-inch product ranges last updated with the iPhone 7.
Undoubtedly the biggest influence on the iPhone 8 cost will be the inclusion of the new OLED display that has been very strongly linked with the smartphone. Apple is still expected to go with the LCD screens that it has always relied on for the iPhone 7S and iPhone 7S Plus, but this new technology will enable the iPhone 8 to really stand out from other releases.
iPhone 8 cost increase
However, reports suggests that this will push up the price tag of the iPhone 8, with the OLED display costing approximately double the price of the existing LCD screen to source. It has been widely anticipated that Apple will acquire most of the panels for the iPhone 8 from its huge rival Samsung, and this could result in a relatively limited launch of the iPhone 8, or even a delayed schedule.
The iPhone 8 cost being in excess of $1,000 has been reported by other sources as well, with Japanese publication Nikkei having commented on this possibility. With Apple ready to include a raft of new technology in the iPhone 8 – such as wireless charging, the first ever curved display from the corporation, and a 3D sensor module intended to deliver facial recognition and augmented reality applications – it is obvious that production cost will ramp up pretty significantly for Apple. Naturally it must pass some of these costs on to the consumer.
Thus, it is already established that production costs will increase, with some pretty concrete figures actually available. For example, ValueWalk reported previously that TPK Holdings will charge between $18-$22 per unit for integrating 3D Touch into the iPhone 8’s display; a 150% jump compared to the last iPhone generation.
New 3D sensing modules and upgraded memory will add around another $45 to the cost of construction. Collectively, all of the new features and physical aspects of the iPhone 8 are expected to elevate the cost of production by over $100. This means that the $1,099 price tag being linked with the most expensive version of the iPhone 8 is entirely feasible.
Different models
However, the iPhone 8 cost will be less than this figure for some of the more affordable and lower-spec models. Goldman Sachs analyst Simona Jankowski believe that Apple will make the iPhone 8 available in 128GB and 256GB versions, with the smaller of the two retailing at $999. While UBS Securities analyst Steven Milunovich suggest that the cost of the iPhone 8 will be $1,070 for the premium unit, with the more affordable base model priced at a more reasonable $870.
Of course, the cost of the iPhone 8 will vary across numerous nations, and there is also early pricing information available for Britain. It has been suggested that the iPhone 8 cost will be £849 for the most affordable variant in the UK, with the premium model being released at a price tag of £999.
iPhone sales
These seem like pretty weighty numbers for a smartphone, yet the consensus of analysts is that the iPhone 8 will still sell extremely well. Two factors must be taken into consideration here. Firstly, Apple has achieved a brand recognition that no other consumer electronics company can claim, with the Apple brand having overtaken Coca-Cola at the head of the authoritative Interbrand survey (Google has also passed Coca-Cola).
Secondly, the new features associated with the iPhone 8 will make this smartphone a must-buy for Apple fans. After several iPhone releases that have been somewhat conservative, it seems that this landmark tenth generation iPhone will be a truly standout device.
Indeed, Morgan Stanley has already discovered that 92% of current iPhone users are expecting to upgrade to a new model within the next 12 months. Considering the massive installed user base that the iPhone range has already accumulated, this means that regardless of the cost of the iPhone 8, the smartphone is set to be another massive success.
