Apple Inc is facing an unprecedented challenge: Persuading customers to buy its latest iPhones without their biggest new feature.
Apple yesterday launched the iPhone 16 lineup in almost 60 countries, including Taiwan, the US, China, India, Australia and South Korea. However, the device does not come installed with Apple Intelligence — the much-anticipated artificial intelligence (AI) software that the company has been touting since June. That means users would have to download the software features over time as they become available during the coming weeks and months.
That has put Apple in a tricky spot. It is already marketing the AI features heavily, but some consumers might hold off on buying the new phones if they cannot enjoy the benefits right away. The new iPhone hardware, meanwhile, has only modest upgrades from prior models. A touch-sensitive camera control button that makes it easier to take pictures and video is the most notable change.
Photo:Bloomberg
Even so, Wall Street remains bullish that Apple can accelerate its growth during the all-important holiday season. Analysts estimate that revenue would increase 8 percent in the fourth quarter — the best showing for that period since the end of 2021.
The new lineup includes two standard models — the 16 and 16 Plus — as well as the higher-end Pro and Pro Max. Preorders of the devices began last week, with shipments to stores and customers getting underway yesterday.
It is rare to see huge crowds of iPhone shoppers at Apple stores these days, but some diehard fans lined up at locations around the world ahead of the launch. The big question is whether ordinary consumers snap up the new model as well.
The initial units going on sale would run the iOS 18 operating system, but Apple Intelligence would require an over-the-air update to the iOS 18.1 software, which is launching next month.
Apple Intelligence was announced in June at the company’s Worldwide Developers Conference and has been available in a limited beta test for developers for the past several weeks.
Apple on Thursday released a public beta version of Apple Intelligence — one aimed at a wider audience — though most customers would not access it until the suite of features is released in its final form next month. Additional capabilities would not be ready until later, part of a staggered launch that would stretch into next year.
When the technology titan introduced the iPhone 16 line, it said that the devices were the first to be built “from the ground up” for Apple Intelligence. However, some iPhones from last year — the 15 Pro and Pro Max — would be able to support the features.
The look of the new phones is little changed from the iPhone 12 design from 2020. However, they feature noticeable battery-life improvements and camera advancements beyond the new button. Prices start at US$799 for the standard iPhone, ranging up to US$1,199 for the Pro Max.
Jensen Huang (黃仁勳), founder and CEO of US-based artificial intelligence chip designer Nvidia Corp and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) on Friday celebrated the first Nvidia Blackwell wafer produced on US soil. Huang visited TSMC’s advanced wafer fab in the US state of Arizona and joined the Taiwanese chipmaker’s executives to witness the efforts to “build the infrastructure that powers the world’s AI factories, right here in America,” Nvidia said in a statement. At the event, Huang joined Y.L. Wang (王英郎), vice president of operations at TSMC, in signing their names on the Blackwell wafer to
AI BOOST: Although Taiwan’s reliance on Chinese rare earth elements is limited, it could face indirect impacts from supply issues and price volatility, an economist said DBS Bank Ltd (星展銀行) has sharply raised its forecast for Taiwan’s economic growth this year to 5.6 percent, citing stronger-than-expected exports and investment linked to artificial intelligence (AI), as it said that the current momentum could peak soon. The acceleration of the global AI race has fueled a surge in Taiwan’s AI-related capital spending and exports of information and communications technology (ICT) products, which have been key drivers of growth this year. “We have revised our GDP forecast for Taiwan upward to 5.6 percent from 4 percent, an upgrade that mainly reflects stronger-than-expected AI-related exports and investment in the third
RARE EARTHS: The call between the US Treasury Secretary and his Chinese counterpart came as Washington sought to rally G7 partners in response to China’s export controls China and the US on Saturday agreed to conduct another round of trade negotiations in the coming week, as the world’s two biggest economies seek to avoid another damaging tit-for-tat tariff battle. Beijing last week announced sweeping controls on the critical rare earths industry, prompting US President Donald Trump to threaten 100 percent tariffs on imports from China in retaliation. Trump had also threatened to cancel his expected meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) in South Korea later this month on the sidelines of the APEC summit. In the latest indication of efforts to resolve their dispute, Chinese state media reported that
CHINESE EXPORT CURBS: A dispute between China and the Netherlands could halt chip supply, affecting vehicle production, US and European auto associations said Groups representing major automakers late on Thursday warned that a chip disruption stemming from a dispute between China and the Dutch government could quickly affect US auto production. Automakers and their suppliers received notice from chipmaker Nexperia (安世半導體) last week that it could no longer guarantee delivery of its chips, the European Automobile Manufacturers Association said, adding that manufacturing could be significantly disrupted. In the US, the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, which represents General Motors, Toyota, Ford, Volkswagen, Hyundai and nearly all other major automakers, urged a quick resolution. “If the shipment of automotive chips doesn’t resume — quickly — it’s going to
RSS