Will new iPhones hit your wallet hard? Apple CEO Tim Cook issues a warning

iPhone Price Hike: The path has become difficult for Apple, which had managed to avoid raising iPhone prices until now. In light of rising costs, the company has signaled a potential price hike.

iPhone Price Hike: Mobile phone prices have been steadily rising over the past few months. Several companies, including Samsung and Xiaomi, have already increased the prices of their smartphones. Until now, it seemed Apple might avoid a price hike and launch the iPhone 18 and iPhone 18 Pro models at the same price points as last year's iPhones; however, Tim Cook himself has now dashed those hopes. The Apple CEO stated that the costs of storage and memory chips are skyrocketing, making a price increase for iPhones unavoidable.

What Cook said about iPhone prices

In an interview, Cook stated that a price hike cannot be averted. He noted that while the company had previously been absorbing the rising costs to shield customers, the situation is no longer manageable. Although Cook did not explicitly mention the iPhone 18 model in his statement, it is widely believed that the rising costs will impact both iPhones and iPads, requiring customers to pay more for these devices.

How much more expensive could the new iPhones be?

According to reports, Apple would need to raise the price of the iPhone 18 Pro by approximately ₹25,000–₹30,000 to maintain its current profit margins. Apple determines iPhone prices based on storage capacity. For an iPhone 17 Pro model, Apple paid $39 (approximately ₹3,700) for 12GB of RAM, whereas for the 18 Pro model, it is having to pay around ₹14,000 for the same amount of RAM. For the base model, storage costs could rise from $13 (approx. ₹1,228) to $51 (approx. ₹4,820).

By how much have Apple's costs increased?

Apple incurred a cost of $530 (approx. ₹50,000) for the parts and manufacturing of the iPhone 17 Pro. Now, due to rising memory chip prices, the manufacturing cost for the iPhone 18 Pro model is expected to reach $726 (approx. ₹69,000). Additionally, Apple plans to include an upgraded camera system in the new iPhone, which could push the price even higher. According to reports, Apple's margin on the iPhone 17 Pro model was 47 percent. Based on these costs, the company's profit margin, and Apple's pricing strategy, the price of the iPhone 18 Pro in the US could be $1,399 (approx. ₹1,32,244). In India, the price would be higher after factoring in taxes and other costs.