Apple is reportedly looking to keep iPhone shipments steady year-over-year, and is looking to increase its revenue by raising the price of the iPhone 15 Pro models.
Render of the iPhone 15 Pro by AppleInsider
Before the COVID pandemic and then during chip supply problems in China, Apple had been tending to produce 90 million iPhones annually. For each of the last two tumultuous years, it has been ordering around 85 million, and now Bloomberg says that's the new target for 2023 too.
Unspecified sources said to be familiar with the plans also say that Apple is looking to increase its revenue from iPhone sales by raising the price of the Pro models. This backs up recent rumors that have suggested the iPhone 15 Pro Max may be the most expensive iPhone ever.
The sources said that the mix of iPhone orders has changed slightly, with Apple deciding to make 2 million fewer of its lowest-cost forthcoming model. That's presumably the base iPhone 15, and the cut is reportedly related to production difficulties with its CMOS sensor.
There is also said to be a small issue with new displays for the iPhone 15 Pro, as recently reported. However, Bloomberg says that these issues are expected to be resolved quickly, and not have an impact on the final shipping volumes or dates.
Apple is also said to be increasing its order for the iPhone 15 Pro models to compensate for the reduction in the base model orders.
At the 2022 launch of the iPhone 14 range, Apple made a point of saying publicly that it was keeping the prices the same as for the previous year's iPhone 13 range. However, that was only true for the US and China, as everywhere else has now seen significant price increases.