Chinese pre-orders for Apple's iPhone 17 break records amid strong demand

SCMP ^ | September 13, 2025 | Coco Fengin in Guangdong

[SunkenCiv]

• iPhone 17 pre-order shipping times start slipping to October | Chance Miller | 9to5Mac | Sept 12 2025
• iPhone Air preorders [Brave news search]
• iPhone Air preorders [Brave videos search]

[mairdie]

Most of the cell phones on Chinese dramas seem to be Apple.

[Governor Dinwiddie]

It's just another Apple phone—a high priced fidget spinner.

[SunkenCiv]

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/chinese-pre-orders-apples-iphone-093000782.html

[ProtectOurFreedom]

One customer, who successfully secured a new handset for delivery on the September 19 launch date, said it took five minutes for the site to process payments.

First world problems...oh, wait!

[SunkenCiv]

Jim Cramer speaks with Apple CEO Tim Cook at Corning plant in Harrodsburg, KY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=juV2cY-BiGg

[SunkenCiv]

Ives: Why U.S. Made iPhones is a “Fairy Tale” #shorts
Schwab Network
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7v07ptdz4X4

[lee martell]

Wasn’t it Gertrude Stein, who became known for saying:
“A phone is a phone is a phone!”
I could be mistaken.

[doorgunner69]

i would not be able to use one anyway......

[Steely Tom]

I’m still using an iPhone 11.

I’m happy with it, and thankful to live in in age when such things are possible.

It cost well under $1000, back in 2019.

Of course $1000 back then would be $2000 now.

[Dr. Sivana]

Ives: Why U.S. Made iPhones is a “Fairy Tale” #shorts Schwab Network https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7v07ptdz4X4

His suggestion of $3,500 per phone is the fairy tale.Labor is a small part of the cost of iPhone production

From Perplexity.ai:
The portion of the cost of building an iPhone that is attributed to labor is estimated to be relatively low, generally around 5-10% of the total manufacturing cost. Labor wages for assembly workers, primarily in China through companies like Foxconn, average about $10 per hour, with some variation. The overall labor cost is a small fraction compared to the high cost of components and other expenses involved in production. For example, in the cost breakdown of making an iPhone 15 Pro, the total cost is about $558, and labor represents a minor share of this total.

If iPhone production were moved to the United States, labor costs alone could increase the manufacturing cost by approximately 25%, potentially making labor cost a much larger portion of the overall cost due to the higher U.S. wages. But under current assembly conditions overseas, labor costs stay within that 5-10% range of total production costs.

[Cronos]

I’ve never owned an apple product or used them. I have a Motorola G85 and sm pretty happy with it.

Fir thise who have used both Apple and Android, what’s the fascination with Apple?

[JZelle]

My iPhone 16 makes me miss my $300 Motorola. Never again.

[PGR88]

I don’t know “The Schwab Network” but this author below worked for Wall Street Journal and in China. He explains very clearly how ONLY China and the CCP could lure Apple to China to make its phones there.

It’s not at all about cheap labor, which perhaps was an initial attraction. Simply put - China has nearly the entire supply chain, machining and assembly to make the iPhone. Replicating that elsewhere is nearly impossible.

It was really a partnership between Apple, Chinese local governments, and the CCP. Thus it will be nearly impossible

The author has been on a lot of podcasts. Very enlightening

https://www.amazon.com/Apple-China-Capture-Greatest-Company/dp/1668053373

[PIF]

iPhone 17, 256GB, connect to any carrier $829 - Apple Care $119 yr,

[gitmo]

Fir thise who have used both Apple and Android, what’s the fascination with Apple?

It boils down to the apps you have already purchased. My employer supplied us with iPads, and urged us to use them for our personal use. I bought a number of apps I use frequently. When I retired, I purchased my own iPhones, iPads and Apple Watches. I need them for medical and other purposes. If I were to switch to Android, I would have to buy a lot of apps, and I might not be able to import the data from my old apps that run on IOS.

[SunkenCiv]

😉

[SunkenCiv]

Based on the number of interviews and every financial network and website on which he appears, he must spend very little time in the office. 😊

[SunkenCiv]

If I were going to replace these entry-level iPhones, I’d consider the base 17. The Air is just an aspirational product with a small battery and lacking the cooling the other news one have. The Pro and Pro Max are for cinematographers and tech video producers. 😎

The stock gouged a hole back in April and has been zig-zagging a generally upward path. I’ll probably bounce out of what I’m in and bounce in and out of this (IRA only).

At that point I’ll have the money to upgrade if I feel like it. I regard mobile phones as phones, with some text messaging and maps, and the camera is nice. But I’m not like the billion or so humans worldwide who treat their phones like an alternative lifestyle.

[SunkenCiv]

IMHO the Motorolas are the best value among the non-IOS phones out there; big screens, work great (for Android), often have great battery life, and typically are pretty low priced.