Apple bets on iPhone 15 Pro being its most popular handset this year

For the last few years we’ve said that the pick of the iPhone range is the Pro, so for example the iPhone 14 Pro is a lot more powerful than the entry level iPhone 14 but the iPhone 14 Pro Max is probably overkill for most. That’s likely to be the case with the iPhone 15 too.

The Pro gets most of the new features without the Pro Max price tag. And, according to a new report, Apple intends the iPhone 15 Pro to be its most in-demand phone when it launches in late 2023.

That report comes via itHome, which quotes a display supply chain analyst who says Apple has ordered considerably more displays for the iPhone 15 Pro than it did for the iPhone 14 Pro.

The analyst says that the order volume could be 100% higher across the iPhone 15 series, with the iPhone 15 Pro accounting for 58% of orders. For the iPhone 14 Pro, that figure was 43%.

The "pro" is short for "profitable"

Apple’s focus on the Pro models isn’t a surprise: according to research by CIRP published earlier this year, in December 2022 the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max accounted for 51% of all iPhone sales in America – not just the iPhone 14 but also older models including the 13, 12 and mini too. The figure might have been even higher if Apple weren’t experiencing some supply issues with the iPhone 14 Pro.

That might also explain why the Pro Max was the bigger seller, accounting for 28% to the Pro’s 23%. That makes it Apple’s most profitable phone thanks to it having the highest price as well as a typically large Apple profit margin.

We’re still in the rumour stage for the iPhone 15 Pro but we do know that Apple intends to keep differentiating the Pro and Pro Max models from the standard and Plus versions. That means the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max are likely to get a faster flavour of USB-C, thinner bezels and a significant camera upgrade.

Less thrillingly, there are also reports that there will be a bigger price gap between the standard/Plus and the Pro/Pro Max models this year.