iPhone 15 Pro Max deliveries delayed till November

CALIFORNIA: Buyers of Apple’s just-unveiled iPhone 15 Pro Max in some countries including China, Japan and the United States may have to wait until November to get the smartphone, an early sign of strong demand for the company as it started taking pre-orders.

Four iPhone 15 models became available for pre-order on Friday in more than 40 countries, following their introduction at an event Tuesday. Apple pushed the delivery of high-end Pro Max model, which starts at $1,199, from Sept 22 to as late as mid-November, suggesting a strong demand.

Shipment times for the blue and black iPhone Pro Max models slipped until as late as October 16, while the natural and white models were delayed until November 13.

Delays affected all storage capacities of the iPhone 15 Pro Max, a version that features a revamped camera and larger screen.

The indications are likely to ease some worries about demand for Apple’s flagship device after a slump in the global smartphone market sapped iPhone sales in the June quarter.

The four-to-five week wait period for the Pro Max in China could also allay fears of a financial hit in Apple’s third-largest market amid growing competition from Huawei (HWT.UL) and Beijing’s widening curbs on iPhone use by government staff.

The wait is slightly shorter for iPhone 15 Pro in China at two to three weeks, according to Apple website. It said it could deliver iPhone 15 on September 22, the day the phone goes on sale in stores.

In top market United States, buyers will have to wait for six to seven weeks before getting the Pro Max, the most expensive model in the iPhone 15 model line-up that was launched last week. The wait is five to six weeks for the model in Japan.

But like China, the wait is shorter for the Pro model, with a period of just two to three weeks for the 128 gigabyte version in the U.S. and Japan.

Some analysts said the long wait period also reflected the lower initial supply of Pro Max as Apple faced hurdles in securing supplies of the displays used in the model with thinner bezels than previous iPhones.

Those issues have, however, been resolved, said Nabila Popal, research director for worldwide tracker group, at IDC.

Meanwhile, Canada is seeing six- to seven-week wait times for the iPhone 15 Pro Max, while Australia, Japan, the UK, India, France and Germany had delays of as much as eight weeks for the iPhone 15 Pro Max in natural titanium. These lags could continue to grow as pre-orders are placed.

Buyers of the standard iPhone 15 Pro with a smaller screen also saw delays, affecting all colours in some storage capacities. The wait time for those phones, which start at $999, is as late as Oct. 23 in the US as of Friday afternoon. So far, the only base-level iPhone 15 models seeing delays were the iPhone 15 Plus in pink in all storage capacities, and the pink and green standard iPhone 15s.

The delayed timelines are affecting home deliveries, which means shoppers may have more luck heading to a store. Some of Apple’s about 270 retail locations in the US still had availability sooner for in-store pick up. The iPhone 15 Pro Max in natural titanium appears to be the hottest seller so far, with the most limited remaining availability at stores and online.