In September this year, Apple did not increase its price when it released a new generation of iPhone 14 series mobile phones, which surprised many people. For the flagship product, which accounts for about half of the company's revenue, Apple doesn't seem to want to hurt its sales because of the price increase.
But for the iPad product line, Apple's price hike is very straightforward. Last night, Apple released the tenth-generation iPad and iPad Pro with an M2 chip directly through the official website. In addition to the performance upgrade, the price increase of the new iPad is also of concern.
The official website shows that the starting price of the tenth-generation iPad 64GB WiFi version has been raised to 3,599 yuan, which is 1,100 yuan more expensive than the previous generation's 2,499 yuan; the new 11-inch iPad Pro starts at 6,799 yuan and 12.9-inch from 9,299 yuan. , which increased by 600 and 800 yuan respectively compared with the previous generation. Moreover, Apple has also raised the price of the iPad Air 5, and the four versions are respectively 400 yuan, 500 yuan, 500 yuan, and 600 yuan more expensive.
Apple declined to comment on how its products are priced.
This is "most likely due to an overall increase in raw material and labor costs," said Anshel Sag, principal analyst at technology consulting and research firm Moor Insights & Strategy.
Price increases due to product upgrades
First of all, the upgrade of the product itself has brought about an increase in cost, and the tenth-generation iPad is indeed significantly different from the lower-priced model released last year. In addition to the colorful new design, it also has a larger 10.9-inch screen, supports 5G wireless networks, and the processor is upgraded to A14. It also ditched Apple's proprietary Lightning port in favor of a USB-C port for charging and connecting accessories. In addition, it not only upgrades the rear camera to 12 million pixels but also introduces the first landscape front camera in the whole series, ensuring that users can keep looking at the camera during video calls.
As the high-end series of the iPad product line, the new iPad Pro is replaced with a new generation of M2 chip. Apple claims that the M2 chip's CPU is 15 percent faster than the previous generation, while the 10-core GPU provides up to 35 percent faster image processing. The 12.9-inch version uses a Mini LED screen, while the 11-inch version continues to use the LED Retina display. Both screens support ProMotion, with a refresh rate of up to 120Hz.
This is also a strategy of Apple. Apple often increases the price of newer models while continuing to sell older models at lower prices. Apple, for example, launched a new MacBook Air earlier this year for $1,199, but the company is still selling the older MacBook Air, released in late 2020, for $999.
International Environmental Impact
Currently, inflation is high in the United States and Europe. The US core CPI rose 6.6% year-on-year in September, the largest increase since August 1982, indicating that the US is under widespread price pressure. The UK inflation rate in July once reached 10.1%, the highest in 40 years, and prices continued to rise rapidly.
Taking the UK as an example, although the price of the iPhone 14 has not increased in China and the US, the price in the UK has risen by £70. The newly released tenth-generation iPad is priced at £499 in the UK, which is £180 more than the previous generation's £319. The new 12.9-inch iPad Pro with M2 chip is priced at £1,249, which is £250 more than the previous £999.
Inflation is also related to changes in exchange rates. In the case of a rising dollar, other currencies will depreciate relatively, driving prices up. The British pound and Japanese yen, for example, have depreciated significantly.
In July of this year, Apple raised the prices of iPhones and iPads in Japan by up to 25% due to the rapid depreciation of the yen. For example, the starting price of the iPhone 13 has risen by 19,000 yen to 117,800 yen, an increase of 19%. iPad and iPad Air rose 10,000 yen, an increase of 25%, 13%.
In fact, Apple is not the only company that has raised prices. In early August, Facebook parent company Meta began raising the price of its Quest 2 virtual reality headset by $100, which has been starting at $299 since it launched in fall 2020. Later that month, Sony announced that the PS5, which was in short supply, would increase its price in certain countries outside the United States.
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