Apple is lagging behind: Vision Pro is cold, the car manufacturing project is aborted, and Apple's smartphone business is in trouble
Only three months have passed in 2024, and Apple has become one of the biggest rollovers in the tech industry.
On the one hand, the highly anticipated Vision Pro has received mixed reviews after its launch, and it has set off a wave of returns in less than half a month; On the other hand, Apple's long-planned car project has officially failed, and billions of dollars of investment have come to naught. Still, it's Apple's smartphone business that's worth paying attention to, as it's the company's most lucrative segment at the moment.
However, Apple's smartphone business is facing a series of crises, one of which is that its technological leadership is gradually being replaced. For example, Samsung pioneered the concept of Galaxy AI in the global market, resulting in a new pre-sale record for the Galaxy S24 series. In terms of imaging, at the launch of the Xiaomi 14 Ultra, a self-developed large model was introduced for the first time, using AI to assist in imaging, pushing mobile phone images to a new height.
Apple's initiative to sell products at lower prices also indicates concerns about its core business. It is reported that Apple's Tmall official *** has launched a substantial discount strategy in the 2024 spring renewal season, and all four models of the iPhone 15 series can enjoy a coupon of 1000 yuan off, and the price reduction is surprising.
What's more noteworthy is that Apple's official Tmall store represents Apple's official position and attitude. In just six months after it went on sale, Apple has launched a large-scale iPhone 15 series**, which shows that Apple's situation is not optimistic.
It has sparked all kinds of speculation and concerns about the iPhone 15 series. On the day of the sale, the iPhone 15 series faced a breakage situation. Among them, iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus are generally discounted by 300-500 yuan in third-party channels, and some unpopular colors are even more unpopular. Surprisingly, even the highly regarded iPhone 15 Pro by Apple could not escape the fate of breaking on the first day.
In fact, the entire iPhone 15 series has failed to attract the attention of consumers, which is the biggest crisis facing Apple. The basic experience such as signal, image, and charging speed is not good enough, which leads to a large number of old users turning to other brands. At the same time, the debut of many powerful new phones in 2024, such as the Xiaomi 14 Ultra, Oppo Find X7 Ultra, Vivo X100 Pro+ and other models, has dealt a heavy blow to the iPhone.
Faced with market challenges, Apple had to adjust its marketing strategy in the Chinese market, and took the initiative to reduce prices as the best choice.
In the Spring Renewal Season event, Apple Tmall*** launched a preferential policy of 5999-1000 large coupons. On this basis, Tmall coupons are superimposed, and consumers can buy iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro in a more affordable and secure way. Although the price reduction is a good thing for consumers, it is not a cure for the symptoms, and Apple still faces the dual challenges of technological backwardness and market competition.
In any case, from a consumer perspective, it's a good thing that Apple is able to offer deals on official channels, so that fans who are interested in the iPhone 15 series have a more affordable and reliable option. However, price reductions are always a palliative approach. If Apple can only rely on price cuts to attract consumers, the iPhone's market advantage will soon disappear.
Fruit powder is adaptive, and sales are the confidence of apples to lie flat.
Since the iPhone 12 series, Apple's innovation seems to have stagnated. However, Apple's users (fruit fans) don't seem to care much about AI, imaging, folding and other technologies. For many fruit fans, buying an apple is like buying LV or Gucci, "it's just buying a bag anyway", and they don't really care about innovation. This has become the basis for Apple's "lying flat" - the market is the best referee. Up to now, Apple still has a very high market share and shipments.
According to the 2023 global smartphone single-model shipment ranking released by market research institute Counterpoint Research, the top seven are all iPhones, while the remaining three are Samsung's mid-to-low-end models.
It is worth noting that the change in the ranking shows that the market demand for the iPhone 14 has far surpassed that of more expensive models such as the iPhone 14 Pro Max, and the more cost-effective predecessor has become the first choice of consumers. This change in market demand forced Apple to be cautious, and when it was unable to launch a mid-range model to "save the market", Apple had to consider a simple and crude strategy of cutting prices.
However, from a realistic point of view, even if the iPhone 15 Pro Max is reduced by 1000+ yuan, its price is still as high as about 8000 yuan, and in this price range, there are already too many powerful Android models to choose from.
Are you a fruit fan in front of the screen?