The Apple, revamp also extends to the flagship products’ once-traditional release schedule, Bloomberg News reported Sunday (Nov. 16) in a report by Mark Gurman.
Apple is also expected to introduce a trio of high-end models (the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max and a new foldable) next fall, according to the report. Six months or so after that, the company will introduce the iPhone 18e and maybe an updated iPhone Air. Gurman said he anticipates this trend to continue for years, as Apple churns out five or six new models of the device every year.
He also contended that the iPhone Air is “largely a technology exercise and a prototype on the way to a foldable iPhone,” because it will utilise many of the same components and technology. It’s not so much about acclimatizing customers to skinnier devices as it is preparing Apple’s supply chain.
Apple, the report added, is in transition with its new release schedule. The company has introduced a lower-cost SE or “e” model earlier in the year, ahead of releasing four primary iPhones in the fall, in recent years.
Apple, Gurman wrote, will no longer feel the need to cram so many releases into the fall next year (as it has in October and November this year), instead benefiting from steadier revenue flow throughout the year and less stress on employees and manufacturers.
Apple became a $4-trillion company last month, in part due to stronger-than-expected demand for the new iPhone 17. It was the third public company to pass that threshold after Nvidia and Microsoft, both of which crossed it in July.
In other Apple news, last week Mid Breaker reported on a major change in the company’s App Store strategy, one that could become a model for how mobile software is developed and how it makes money.
The company has introduced a program that reduces the 30% fee it typically takes from app developers on in-app sales for a category of software known as “mini apps.” The program gives developers of mini apps — which run inside other standalone apps rather than being downloaded on their own — a 15 percent commission in exchange for using Apple’s technology to build the app.
“This could transform how consumers use their phones,” Mid Breaker said. “Instead of having multiple apps all over the phone, users may have a small number of big traditional apps that incorporate tens or hundreds of mini-apps. That can make phones less cluttered and offer users more features in fewer places.
