Apple is having a hard time coping up with the huge order volume for the iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max as high demand strains its supply and production lines.
In what appears like a case of "biting off more than it can chew," new reports indicate that Apple is having a hard time coping up with iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro max supply as high consumer demand strains production lines. In a disclosure report of delivery times by investment bank JP Morgan, it appears that iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max supply does not match high consumer demand for the products. The issue, however, does not seem to affect lower-priced models like the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini.
Analyst Samik Chatterjee, in an iPhone model availability tracker note, states that JP Morgan continues to observe building lead times or the time it takes for a consumer to receive the iPhone model, in the case of the two Pro versions, they ordered. The report indicates that iPhone 12 Pro lead times increased to an average of around 27 days across several locations. According to the investment bank, this is the longest lead-time tracked by JP Morgan so far since they began tracking availability for the new iPhone 12 models. The report indicates that the current supply for the iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max is way below the high consumer demand for the devices, which in effect, strains production lines in a bid to cope with the orders.
"Given that it has now been a few weeks since the specific SKUs have been available is a favorable indicator of customer demand," Chatterjee noted. When based on a model-by-model, lower-priced iPhone 12 mini and iPhone 12 model lead times are presently lower compared to what the data showed in the previous week. This suggests there is a moderation of supply and demand. However, when it comes to Pro models like the iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max, it shows that the supply is having a hard time coping up with the high consumer demand for the products. Chatterjee said that this could force Apple and its partner manufacturers to ramp up the assembly of the devices, straining its production lines.
The JP Morgan delivery times report also noted that as of the week of December 7, the iPhone 12 mini and iPhone 12 average delivery-at-home timing across the locations remained steady at three days. This means that supply for such devices coped with consumer demand. In the case of the iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max, however, delivery-at-home timing across the locations increased to 27 days and 23 days, indicating that supply is having difficulties in coping up with high consumer demand, which may further strain production lines. In the US, which accounts for approximately 35% of iPhone 12 shipments worldwide, lead times for the Pro models further rose to 33 days and 25 days.
