Upgraded camera, power chip, and design, all make Apple’s newest iPhone a tempting splurge, but the real question begs if it delivers enough to justify the splurge.
On Sept. 9, Apple announced its new iPhone lineup, featuring a brighter ProMotion display, upgraded A19 chip, tougher Ceramic Shield 2 glass, 48MP rear camera, and an ‘all-day’ battery life, these improvements may be more ‘nice to have’ than essential—especially given the price hike.
In Canada, Apple charges $1,129 for the base iPhone 17 model, $1,599 for the iPhone 17 Pro—an increase of $150 from last year. The newly added iPhone Air will start retailing at $1,449 with starting prices for the iPhone 17 Pro Max reaching upwards of $1,749.
Apple faces high stakes with the new launch after weaker iPhone 16 sales. First–weekend pre-sales in 2024 reached 37 million units, down 12 per cent from the iPhone 15 launched the previous year.
Similarly, Apple only sold 9.8 million units of the iPhone 16 Pros and 17.1 million iPhone 16 Pro Max devices, down 27 per cent and 16 per cent year-over-year, respectively.
The decrease in sales follows the rollout of Apple Intelligence features. At the release in June 2024, Apple acknowledged that its bot lagged behind competitors like Google’s Gemini and OpenAI’s ChatGPT, which company date shared with Bloomberg’s Businessweek was25 per cent more efficient at answering most queries.
Consumers were disappointed with the seemingly rushed release of the product, with some even arguing the release was an “abject failure.” The updates for Siri, Apple’s intelligent assistant, which were set to be released alongside the iPhone 16 in September 2024, have now been pushed back for a spring 2026 launch.
Despite insistence from President Trump and U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick that iPhones be made in the United States instead of overseas—resulting in a doubling or even tripling of current retail price—Apple has managed to keep the more severe effects of Trump’s tariffs at bay.
The negotiation includes Apple investing over $500 billion domestically, a new server manufacturing facility in Houston, Texas, a supplier academy in Michigan, and additional spending on existing suppliers within the country.
All eyes are on Apple this September, with its recent dubious history with artificial intelligence, Trump’s tariffs, and rising costs. It seems like a make-or-break moment for the company, for both its reputation as an industry leader in innovation and for its ability to keep up with new technology.
Tags
Apple, iPhone, iPhone 17, Sales
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