India, China may produce iPhone 15 simultaneously next year, says analyst

As Apple prepares to unveil next-generation iPhone 14 series next week which will be assembled in India just about six weeks behind China, industry analyst Ming-Chi Kuo on Thursday claimed that the next iPhone 15 is likely to be manufactured at the same time in India and China next year.

As the time difference between India and China has narrowly decreased in terms of manufacturing iPhones in the country, it is now expected that both countries would produce iPhone 15 simultaneously in 2023.

"The iPhone 14's mass production schedule in India this year is still about six weeks behind China, but the gap has improved significantly. Therefore, it is reasonable to expect that India and China will be able to produce the new iPhone 15 at the same time next year," Kuo tweeted.

Last month, reports mentioned that the tech giant will start the production of the latest iPhones in India two months after its debut.

However, the Kuo now mentions that it will be manufactured "about six weeks" later.

"My latest survey indicates Foxconn's iPhone production site in India will ship the new 6.1-inch iPhone 14 almost simultaneously with China for the first time in the second half of 2022 (India being one quarter or more behind in the past)," Kuo tweeted last month.

In the short term, India's iPhone capacities/shipments still have a considerable gap with China, "but it's an important milestone for Apple in building a non-Chinese iPhone production site," the analyst added.

The tech giant has been working with its suppliers and ramping up its production in India over the years.

Meanwhile, Apple's 'Far Out' event on September 7 will showcase the new iPhone 14 lineup, Watches, and other products.

This will be an in-person event at Apple's Cupertino campus in the US, the company's first big event to take place since the two years of the pandemic.

Apple sold over 1.2 million iPhones in the country in the second quarter (Q2) this year, registering a massive 94 per cent growth (year-on-year) according to market intelligence firm CyberMedia Research (CMR).

Apple first started manufacturing iPhones in India in 2017, with iPhone SE.

The tech giant manufactures some of its most advanced iPhones in the country, including iPhone 11, iPhone 12 and iPhone 13 at the Foxconn facility while iPhone SE and iPhone 12 are being assembled at the Wistron factory in the country.

--IANS

vc/