- Apple has announced that they will increase the prices of their products
- These increases could be “quite imminent,” according to a journalist
- The price changes are due to the current shortage of components.
A few days ago, Apple CEO Tim Cook announced the disappointing news that “unfortunately, price increases are inevitable” for his company’s products, all thanks to the current computer component crisis. And if you were hoping to weather the storm a little longer, we’ve got bad news: Apple device costs could rise sooner rather than later.
That’s at least the expectation of Bloomberg journalist Mark Gurman, who posted on X to say he saw the price increases as “pretty imminent.” In fact, rather than wait until the end of the year, Gurman argued that the changes would “come soon,” before adding that they were “not a fall issue.”
Gurman also noted that Apple’s back-to-school sales, which typically occur during the summer, are also “imminent,” and that Apple could have announced the price increases now so it could soften the blow with a summer sale, with costs rising once it’s over.
That means events like Amazon Prime Day or Apple’s back-to-school sales could be your last chance for a while to pick up one of the best iPhones, Macs, and iPads at a decent price. Because with parts like memory and storage still selling at inflated levels, it doesn’t look like there’s much relief on the way.
Even more premium
Apple has built a reputation as a premium brand with devices that tend to be more expensive. But even if you’re used to that positioning, price increases can hurt.
And as Apple expert John Gruber has noted, “For Apple, prices are part of a product’s brand, so they don’t fluctuate with component costs.” That means that once higher costs come into play, we should “expect those prices to hold,” Gruber believes.
We’ve seen this in the past: the price of the “trash” Mac Pro stayed at $3,000 even when its specs were seriously outdated. Similarly, Apple adjusted UK prices to be more in line with US prices after the 2016 Brexit vote and hasn’t changed course a decade later.
Gruber also notes that if Apple believes component prices will continue to rise throughout 2027, it will simply implement a large price increase now instead of raising prices again later. So that means we could see a single increase of $200/£200/AU$400 instead of two separate increases of $100/£100/AU$200, for example.
If you’re considering purchasing any new technology from Apple, all of this means it would be wise to act sooner rather than later. But it’s worth noting that there may be a slight difference between Gurman and Gruber when it comes to timing.
While Gurman says the changes are “imminent” and will happen before the fall, Gruber believes Apple could wait until the new iPhone 18 Pro launches in September.
Still, whatever date Apple chooses to implement its pricing adjustments, you won’t want to wait if you’ve got your eye on some shiny new Apple kit. Before long, we could see Apple become even more premium than it already is.
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