Foreign news agencies have analyzed Apple's production costs, indicating a planned price increase of $200-$300 to maintain gross profit margins. Tim Cook acknowledges that Apple is indeed affected.
Apple fans may need to budget more for the new smartphone model, as recent reports and assessments suggest the iPhone 18 Pro, expected to launch this September, could start at $1,399 or higher. The primary cause is the unprecedented rise in costs for key components such as RAM, storage, and a new camera hardware system.
This development aligns with Apple CEO Tim Cook's interview with The Wall Street Journal, where he admitted the company cannot avoid the impact of the soaring chip price crisis. When asked about pricing directions, Cook said the company is still considering how to address this issue, prompting analysts from The Wall Street Journal and research firm TechInsights to reevaluate pricing forecasts.
TechInsights' price and cost structure analysis shows that for the previous iPhone 17 Pro, priced at $1,099, Apple achieved a gross profit margin of 47 percent. To maintain the same margin for the iPhone 18 Pro amid higher component costs, Apple would need to set the price at $1,371.
However, given Apple's pricing standards, analysts expect Apple may set the starting price at $1,299, which would reduce the gross profit margin to 44 percent.
Even so, the $1,299 estimate does not include the new camera system upgrade. Renowned supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo estimates that the new camera components cost 50 percent more than before. Including this factor, Apple may need to raise the iPhone 18 Pro starting price to $1,399, representing a $200 to $300 increase over the previous model.
This price restructuring for the iPhone 18 Pro will likely cause a domino effect on other models in the series. The top-tier iPhone 18 Pro Max is expected to have a starting price $100 higher than the iPhone 18 Pro, following Apple's usual price gap, and may push the previously rumored price for the premium iPhone Ultra to around $2,000 (approximately 66,000 baht).