China: Record pre-orders for iPhone 17
The Chinese market has been a difficult business for Apple recently. The iPhone 17 is apparently doing much better again.
The iPhone 17 – seen here from behind with the camera modules.
(Image: Apple)
Apple's new iPhone 17 smartphone series seems to be going down well in the People's Republic of China. According to initial data on pre-order figures, all previous records for iPhones in the country have been broken – despite the fact that the iPhone Air, Apple's ultra-thin model, had to be delayed initially due to approval problems with the eSIM. According to a report in the Hong Kong-based South China Morning News, the major e-commerce platform JD.com saw more pre-order traffic in the first minute than on the entire first day for the iPhone 16. The cheapest iPhone, the standard model with 256 GB of storage space, was particularly popular.
Problem case iPhone Air
Apple had pre-orders for the iPhone Air canceled at short notice until regulatory issues are resolved. The slim iPhone is the first device in China to only come with an integrated SIM card, which apparently poses challenges for the authorities. All other models continue to use physical SIM cards, as is customary in the Middle Kingdom. The eSIM saves space in the iPhone Air for a larger battery, but it also means that initially only one Chinese mobile provider, China Mobile, can allow the device on its network.
Videos by heise
The demand for the iPhone 17 in China was so high that users were reportedly unable to open Apple's own pre-order page. One customer reported that it took five minutes for the payment confirmation to go through. In addition, all pick-up appointments for the iPhone 17 Pro Max in the metropolis of Shanghai on the sales launch day (next Friday, September 19) are said to have been filled after just 20 minutes. By Saturday, waiting times in individual Chinese provinces for all variants of the iPhone 17 had already increased to mid-October.
Chinese market recovers
Apple launched an entirely new form factor for this year's iPhone – the iPhone Air – but also made some clearly visible changes to the other model series. For example, the iPhone 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max have a new "Camera Plateau" with a new aluminum housing and new colors, including a bright orange. The standard iPhone 17 model is considered attractive because it includes a ProMotion display (1 to 120 Hertz with always-on screen), a faster processor, and better cameras for the first time. Contrary to previous fears – prices were also not increased – with prices now starting at 256 GB and not 128 GB.
The Chinese market had been difficult for Apple recently, government subsidies favored local models and there was a veritable patriotic campaign not to buy Apple products, even though they are still mainly produced in China. However, it has been apparent for some time that the market appears to be slowly recovering. This phase now seems to have accelerated significantly with the iPhone 17.
Empfohlener redaktioneller Inhalt
Mit Ihrer Zustimmung wird hier ein externer Preisvergleich (heise Preisvergleich) geladen.
Ich bin damit einverstanden, dass mir externe Inhalte angezeigt werden. Damit können personenbezogene Daten an Drittplattformen (heise Preisvergleich) übermittelt werden. Mehr dazu in unserer Datenschutzerklärung.
(bsc)
