Updated
Updated · Mashable · Jun 17
Apple Warns iPhone 18 Could Cost Up to $200 More as Chip Crunch Persists
Updated
Updated · Mashable · Jun 17

Apple Warns iPhone 18 Could Cost Up to $200 More as Chip Crunch Persists

3 articles · Updated · Mashable · Jun 17

Summary

  • Tim Cook said Apple can no longer absorb soaring memory costs, warning the iPhone 18 will likely be priced above prior models when it launches this fall.
  • TechInsights estimates memory and storage parts in the iPhone 18 Pro could cost Apple about $150 more than in the iPhone 17, as AI companies intensify competition for supply.
  • Cook did not name specific products or exact increases, but his comments undercut recent reports that the iPhone 18 Pro would hold at the iPhone 17 Pro's $1,099 price.
  • The warning comes before Cook hands the CEO role to John Ternus in September, signaling Apple wants to prepare customers for broader price pressure across its hardware lineup.

Insights

As the AI chip 'supercycle' inflates iPhone prices, is the era of affordable technology officially over?
Will the AI-driven chip shortage finally force tech giants like Apple to build their own manufacturing plants?
With AI infrastructure spending nearing $1 trillion, is this computational arms race creating an unsustainable economic bubble?