Apple earlier this month acknowledged that customers faced longer wait times for iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max models because of reduced supply chain capacity, but the delays appear to have gotten worse.
On Apple's online store in the United States, the devices' estimated shipping times are currently hovering around the six-week mark, with deliveries for all iPhone 14 Pro models now only available from December 27, already putting them out of reach of many would-be gift-buying customers before Christmas Day.
The delays corroborate analyst expectations that Apple's iPhone 14 Pro models will fall short of earlier shipment estimates for the year, following lockdowns at the main Foxconn factory in China where the devices are assembled.
Foxconn is now expected to ship 79 million units in the current quarter, down from the previous 85 million handsets estimate, due to the stringent COVID-19 restrictions imposed on the factory in Zhengzhou in recent weeks, according to investment firm Morgan Stanley (via Bloomberg).
"The wait time for 14 Pro/Pro Max has extended to four to five weeks as of late versus two to four weeks a month ago, implying demand stays healthy, even with supply gap," wrote the analysts in a note.
Looking ahead, Morgan Stanley predicts higher-than-usual output in the first few months of 2023 to make up for unfilled demand. Meanwhile, operations at the Zhengzhou facility have already resumed, with workers having been ferried to the plant over the weekend as Foxconn seeks to make up for lost ground.
