iPhone 15 to Face Challenges Despite New Hardware Upgrades as Apple Acknowledges Market Slowdown: Mark Gurman

iPhone 15 series will reportedly be unveiled on September 12 or September 13, and go on sale on September 22.

Written by David Delima, Edited by Siddharth Suvarna | Updated: 7 August 2023 11:51 IST

iPhone 15 to Face Challenges Despite New Hardware Upgrades as Apple Acknowledges Market Slowdown: Mark Gurman

iPhone 15 Pro is expected to arrive next month as the successor to the iPhone 14 Pro (pictured)

Highlights

iPhone 15 series could debut in September amid a sluggish market
Apple revealed that its iPhone sales declined by 2.4 percent in Q3 2024
The iPhone 15 series is expected to debut with notable hardware upgrades

iPhone 15 — Apple's purported next-generation smartphone — is expected to launch in the coming weeks, but the Cupertino company will reportedly face challenges amid a tough smartphone market despite major updates that are tipped to make their debut on the smartphone. The iPhone 15 is said to be the first major upgrade since the iPhone 12 was unveiled in 2020, with upgrades to the display, charging port and faster processors, while the iPhone 15 Pro models could feature a more durable titanium frame and slimmer display bezels than its predecessor.

In his weekly Power On newsletter, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman points out that Apple has finally acknowledged that “the smartphone market has been in a decline for the last couple of quarters in the United States.” As a result, the smartphone maker will have to do more to convince customers to purchase the upcoming iPhone 15 series, which is said to comprise the iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone 15 Pro, and iPhone 15 Pro Max.

According to previous reports, the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus will feature the A16 Bionic chip and the Dynamic Island from last year's iPhone 14 Pro models, along with upgraded cameras. Meanwhile, the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max are said to feature a new titanium chassis that is more durable, and a 3nm chipset that is much faster than last year's models. Gurman previously claimed that the Pro models will be equipped with displays that have 1.5mm bezels, the thinnest on an iPhone to date.

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Apple's top-of-the-line iPhone 15 Pro Max model is also tipped to feature a periscope camera for improved optical zoom. Meanwhile, the iPhone 15 lineup is also expected to drop the Lightning port in favour of a USB Type-C port to comply with EU regulations.

However, Gurman states in his newsletter that despite all these expected hardware upgrades, Apple will face challenges due to the ongoing market slowdown. The company's smartphone sales were more resilient than its competitors, which have also suffered due to the slowdown, but Apple revealed that its iPhone sales fell 2.4 percent to $39.7 billion (roughly Rs. 3,28,189 crore) in the June quarter.

The iPhone 15 series is tipped to debut next month and Gurman says that the lineup could be unveiled on September 12 or September 13, and go on sale on September 22. While the firm will face a challenge as it tries to convince customers to upgrade their smartphones amid the sluggish market despite all the new hardware upgrades, Gurman says it "shouldn't be hard" for the Cupertino company's next phone models to show year-over-year growth, after the iPhone 14 series' production hiccups last year related to the COVID-19 restrictions at assembly plants in China.

iPhone Sales in India Helped Apple Set June Quarter Revenue Record

Meanwhile, Apple is testing a new Mac model powered by a M3 chip that could make its debut in October, according to Gurman. Previous reports hint at the arrival of new Mac models with the next-generation chipset, and the latest model that is being tested is reportedly powered by an octa core M3 chip with 10 graphics cores and 24GB of RAM and could debut as the company's next Mac mini model. Apple is yet to announce plans to launch new Mac models a month after the expected debut of its next generation of smartphones in September.

From the launch of the Infinix GT 10 Pro to Amazon's latest mega-sale, we discuss the most noteworthy technology news events of the week on the latest episode of Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast. Orbital is available on Spotify, Gaana, JioSaavn, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music and wherever you get your podcasts.

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iPhone 15

REVIEW
KEY SPECS
NEWS

Design
Display
Software
Performance
Battery Life
Camera
Value for Money

Good
Big upgrades over the 14
Excellent ergonomics, build quality
Very good all-round performance
Apple ecosystem benefits

Bad
Relatively slow charging
Expensive
Still a 60Hz display

Read detailed Apple iPhone 15 review

Display 6.10-inch

Processor Apple A16 Bionic

Front Camera 12-megapixel

Rear Camera 48-megapixel + 12-megapixel

RAM 6GB

Storage 128GB, 256GB, 512GB

OS iOS 17

Resolution 1179x2556 pixels

More Apple mobiles Apple mobiles price in India

Apple iPhone 15 Plus

KEY SPECS
NEWS

Display 6.70-inch

Processor Apple A16 Bionic

Front Camera 12-megapixel

Rear Camera 48-megapixel + 12-megapixel

RAM 8GB

Storage 128GB, 256GB, 512GB

OS iOS 17

Resolution 1290x2796 pixels

More Apple mobiles Apple mobiles price in India

Apple iPhone 15 Pro

KEY SPECS
NEWS

Display 6.10-inch

Processor Apple A17 Pro

Front Camera 12-megapixel

Rear Camera 48-megapixel + 12-megapixel + 12-megapixel

RAM 8GB

Storage 128GB, 256GB, 512GB, 1TB

OS iOS 17

Resolution 1179x2556 pixels

More Apple mobiles Apple mobiles price in India

Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max

REVIEW
KEY SPECS
NEWS

Design
Display
Software
Performance
Battery Life
Camera
Value for Money

Good
Excellent display
USB Type-C
AAA gaming
Excellent all-round performance
Good primary and telephoto camera
Customisable Action Button

Bad
Gets hot quickly when stressed
Slow wired charging
Expensive

Read detailed Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max review

Display 6.70-inch

Processor Apple A17 Pro

Front Camera 12-megapixel

Rear Camera 48-megapixel + 12-megapixel + 12-megapixel

RAM 8GB

Storage 256GB, 512GB, 1TB

OS iOS 17

Resolution 1290x2796 pixels

More Apple mobiles Apple mobiles price in India

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Further reading: iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 series, Apple, Apple sales, Mac, M3 chip

David Delima

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As a writer on technology with Gadgets 360, David Delima is interested in open-source technology, cybersecurity, consumer privacy, and loves to read and write about how the Internet works. David can be contacted via email at DavidD@ndtv.com, on Twitter at @DxDavey, and Mastodon at mstdn.social/@delima. More