Apple Held The Line On MacBook Pricing While Microsoft Hiked Surface Prices, But The iPhone 18 Is Where The Streak Reportedly Breaks
Wccftech • • general
Key Points:
- Morgan Stanley predicts Apple will have to raise prices for the upcoming iPhone 18 models, breaking from its recent strategy of freezing product prices despite rising memory costs.
- Apple has maintained price freezes on products like MacBooks, gaining a competitive edge over rivals such as Microsoft, whose Surface laptop prices have increased significantly.
- Apple's strategy includes discontinuing lower-storage variants instead of raising prices, but escalating memory costs are forcing the company to consider price hikes to protect margins.
- Analyst Erik Woodring expects a $100 price increase for iPhone 18 variants compared to iPhone 17 models, though this is unlikely to diminish Apple's competitive advantage given broader industry price hikes.
- The memory-driven inflation challenge is limiting Apple's ability to maintain its market dominance through price control, highlighting the impact of supply chain cost pressures on tech pricing strategies.
