Apple iPhone XR could be facing a bumpy start: Reports

Way back at the iPhone event held in September, the iPhone XR stole the spotlight away from the XS and XS Max as it was firstly priced attractively and had the best features that are seen on the XS/Max OLED flagships, but on an LCD display. Since the iPhone XR is almost identical to that of the iPhone X in terms of design, the budget-friendly model has been tipped to do the best amongst the recently announced iPhones with a lot of analysts expecting its sales to surpass those of the iPhone XS and XS Max. 

However, according to a recent report by Forbes, a new worrying revelation has states that the XR was one of the first new iPhones in history to not sell out within hours of it going up for pre-order.

The report also notes that the situation is even more worrying as three days after going on pre-order, the iPhone XR which in India has a starting price of Rs 76,900, hasn't been sold out and is still available on shelves in every colour and configuration on Apple.com. The launch day and shipping on October 26 is almost around the corner.

This raises an obvious question — has Apple managed to raise sufficient inventory sufficiently to meet and exceed demand? While Apple could have prepared for the higher supply expecting high sales, it is quite honestly difficult to believe.

The reason for this disbelief is that in Apple's 11-year history of iPhones, shipping dates of the handset usually slips to weeks within minutes of it going up for pre-order. In the case of the iPhone XR, Apple is launching it a month later after the XS and XS Max flagships as there were quite a few reports citing delays in production due to various reasons. Hence, in order to resolve this issue in such a short span of time to exceed demand-supply, is a bit difficult to believe.

The report also notes that the XS and XS Max have a higher possibility to succeed as various sources claim that the handsets have sold more than the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus during the same launch period last year. Additionally, iPhone 6S and 7 sales are also believed to be higher than expected. And now, with sales of the iPhone XR projected to be the highest this year, something surely isn’t going right for Apple this year round.

While the final sales are yet to happen, we are yet to watch how the iPhone XR shows demand between Apple fans and others first timers who would probably come across from the Android area to get a feel of a cheaper, yet power-packed iOS device.

Disclaimer: The above report is completely based on online rumours and leaks from the respective sources. These views and opinions do not necessarily represent those of Deccan Chronicle and/or other staff and contributors to this website.

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