iPhone 7 Plus Stock Expected to Remain Tight Through Holiday Shopping Season

Apple is unlikely to reach iPhone 7 supply and demand equilibrium by the end of the December quarter, suggesting stock will remain tight through the holiday shopping season, according to Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster.

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Munster checked 134 Apple retail stores in the United States for in-store iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus availability and found 47% of models he checked were available for pickup compared to 40% a month ago. By comparison, he said last year the iPhone 6s lineup was at 100% availability at this time.

iPhone 7 models remain more widely available than iPhone 7 Plus models by a significant margin. In a research note obtained by MacRumors, Munster said iPhone 7 Plus inventory remains constrained, with only 3% of SKUs available in the Apple retail stores he checked compared to 14% a month ago.

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Piper Jaffray said iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus inventory in China continues to be more constrained than on Apple's home turf. It found 16% total availability of SKUs at 96 China Unicom stores versus the 47% figure in the United States.

Related Roundup: iPhone 7

Tags: Piper Jaffray, Gene Munster, Apple retail

Top Rated Comments

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icanhazapple

35 months ago

Apple is in a standoff with some of their big suppliers. They keep asking for more discounts, yet Apple keeps all the additional profit.

The suppliers are fed up - we'll give you the parts at the price and volume we quoted you. No more feebies/extra volume.

Rating: 7 Votes

jmh600cbr

35 months ago

easy to get an an apple store. watch istocknow for 2 days and you can get one, i've already managed to help more than 3 friends get various colors including jet. we've had them since the 3rd week

Rating: 5 Votes

JimmyJimmyYam

35 months ago

Well, duh, that's what happens if you constrain supply.

Rating: 5 Votes

coolfactor

35 months ago

They just have to watch out.
Apple doesn't want a exploding phone problem like Samsung had after Samsung put unrealistic requirements on their suppliers.

That supplier was their very own Samsung Battery.

Rating: 4 Votes

Mad Mac Maniac

35 months ago

It'll be interesting to see sales numbers for the 7 over the next year. The 7 is arguably the worst, most controversial iPhone upgrade ever, and at a time when the competition is high, older iPhone models are increasing in longevity, and while the subsidized pricing structure is going away.

I for one am still rocking my 6+. I'm not a hater. The 7 is a great phone, but I no longer feel required to purchase every other year...

Rating: 4 Votes

macduke

35 months ago

I think the average consumer realizes that the iPhone 7 is just a darn good phone. Does it look significantly different? Not really unless you get one of the black colors. But unlike other iPhone models that I've went on here to complain about in the past, there's not much to say about the iPhone 7. It's just really good, and isn't really missing anything worth complaining about. If pressed I could probably come up with a list, such as full waterproofing, more improvements to low-light performance, deeper display black levels, maybe a bit more punch from the top speaker, and reduced bezels. But those are things that most people probably don't care a whole lot about. I feel like the thing finally has good enough waterproofing, good enough low-light performance, one of the best displays in the industry, finally has stereo speakers, and the battery life is finally at a point where I don't ever have to worry about it. The lack of a headphone jack is really the only con to this thing, and over time that will become less of an issue.

Rating: 3 Votes

sbuttler77

35 months ago

Rating: 3 Votes

Tsuchiya

35 months ago

That's annoying. My carrier is struggling to meet demand for the orders they received for the model I want. TBH I'm not sure I'll still want the phone if I'm kept waiting into the new year.

Rating: 2 Votes

profets

35 months ago

Wow, over 2 months since launch and the Plus model still shows 3-4 weeks.

Either there is some crazy demand, or maybe they are still supply constrained with some part that is specific to the Plus.

Rating: 2 Votes

puckhead193

35 months ago

That's annoying. My carrier is struggling to meet demand for the orders they received for the model I want. TBH I'm not sure I'll still want the phone if I'm kept waiting into the new year.

by the time you get it it will almost be September for the real upgrade. Just hold out a few months unless your phone is destroyed. I'm waiting it out. Not running around from store to store to find the phone I want or wait a month for it. Wait a few more months and I'll order the phone that shoulda been released in September.

Rating: 2 Votes

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