Higher Apple prices look set to slow upgrade cycles

A poll of thousands of 9to5Mac readers suggests that higher Apple prices are likely to slow upgrade cycles, even among the most enthusiastic of customers.

Upgrading less frequently was by far the most common response given by readers, while just 9% of respondents said that the price increases wouldn’t affect their purchasing behavior …

As we’ve noticed previously, some of the price hikes exceeded 50%, with memory and storage upgrades literally doubling in some cases – and all the signs suggest that the situation isn’t likely to improve anytime soon.

A subsequent analyst report suggested that there won’t be any improvement in supply-chain pricing before 2028, and even that will be limited in effect. It seems pretty clear that the far higher pricing in place today will last for years as a minimum, and quite possibly won’t ever be reverted.

If anyone were likely to grit their teeth and continue buying Apple products at the same rate, you’d expect it to be 9to5Mac readers, but a poll on Friday suggests that there are limits even for this demographic.

More than 90% of readers said that they would change their purchasing behavior in response to the higher prices, and well over a third said that they would upgrade less frequently.

• Upgrade less frequently: 38%
• Wait for sales: 14%
• Drop one or more Apple products: 12%
• Buy lower-end models: 9%
• No effect: 9%

One reader commented:

I’ll still buy apple products. But, I might not upgrade my phone every year. I might not upgrade my computer every three years. I might decide to upgrade my phone every two or three years and my computer every five or six.

Of course, it’s possible that new features might persuade people to change their mind, but it does at least raise the hope that Apple will see slowing sales and that this might potentially lead to at least some form of subsequent price reduction in order to protect demand.

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