Apple has greatly overestimated orders for the iPhone 12 mini
Apple cut its planned production of the iPhone 12 mini for the first half of this year as part of a wider revision of production plans it drafted late last year, according to reports from the Nikkei Asian Review.
The American tech giant has cut orders for all iPhones by about 20 percent compared to its plans in December, with the majority coming from the mini-phone, which is the cheapest phone that supports the fifth-generation network.
Late last year, Apple asked suppliers to supply components and parts for up to 96 million phones, including the entire iPhone 12 lineup for the first six months of 2021, and the total also included the older iPhone 11 and iPhone SE models.
At one point, Apple told some suppliers it needed components for more than 100 million iPhones for the first half of the year in an effort to secure components and production capacity amid a global shortage.
The company is now targeting production of about 75 million units - slightly higher than its iPhone shipments in the same period last year.
The company told suppliers that it still plans to manufacture 230 million iPhones in 2021, up more than 11 percent from last year.
The planned production of the iPhone 12 mini is said to have decreased by 70 percent or more in the first half of this year, which is the majority of the 20 percent reduction in the total production of the iPhone 12 lineup.
Some suppliers have been asked to temporarily stop producing small components for the small phone, while others have been repurposed to iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max.
The review reflects a correction to Apple's previous strong reservation of components and parts at a time when makers of smartphones, computers, servers, cars, and more have been preparing to fight for limited supplies of chips, displays, and other resources.
"Apple has misjudged the demand for both the iPhone 12 Pro and the iPhone 12 mini," said Jeff Pu, a veteran smartphone analyst at GF Securities.
"Consumers won't immediately feel this strong sense about the differences between processors and 5G wireless performance, but they can immediately see the difference in screen size," he added.
And he continued, saying: If the price is close, many consumers prefer to choose the older iPhone 11, which has a larger screen because they do not expect much from 5G yet.
The iPhone 12 mini suffers from another problem, which is its battery, as the iPhone 12 mini battery is much smaller than the older iPhone 11 battery, and they are about the same price, and it is also smaller than the iPhone 12 battery, which is only $ 100 more expensive.
5G phone generally consumes more power, so consumers are reluctant to buy a phone that does not have a relatively good battery.
As of the end of last year, between 10 and 15 percent of Apple's orders for the iPhone 12 series had been allocated to the iPhone 12 mini.
The change in production plans poses a major challenge to Apple's suppliers, who are forced to quickly adjust production utilization rates and business resources, especially those that primarily provide parts for the iPhone 12 mini.