Imminent iPhone 15 Pro launch could be behind iPhone 14 sales resurgence

(Image credit: Future)

With Apple getting ready to announce the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro lineups as soon as next month, people appear to be changing their buying decisions in terms of the current lineup.

According to newly-shared display revenue figures, the iPhone 14 has become the best-selling OLED phone as of Q2 2023. That spot went to the iPhone 14 Pro Max as recently as the first quarter of the year, but Apple's best iPhone now finds itself slipping down the list — even falling below the budget iPhone 13.

As for why that's happening, it's likely that customers of Apple's high-end iPhones are choosing to wait for the new models to arrive in September. Those who would normally shop towards the mid-range continue to buy, however.

All change

This is all based on figures shared by the analysts at Display Supply Chain Consultants (DSCC) and picked up by WCCFTech, which show that the iPhone 14 represented 15.3% of the AMOLED revenue share during Q2 2023. The iPhone 13 sat at 11.1% and the iPhone 14 Pro Max came in third at 10.7%.

Compare that with the previous quarter, and things make for interesting reading.

In Q1 2023, the iPhone 14 Pro Max took 20.1% of the market, while the iPhone 14 Pro sat at 15.6%. The iPhone 13 was third with 7.8% and the iPhone 14 — the current heavy hitter — was right down in 7,7%.

If Pro iPhone buyers are waiting for the new handsets to arrive, that could help Apple post bumper sales towards the end of 2023. But things aren't as good for the competition. Samsung has the only non-Apple device in the top five in terms of OLED display panel revenue with its own flagship device, the Galaxy S23 Ultra.

Apple is expected to announce the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 lineups in the middle of September, likely alongside the Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2.

Oliver Haslam has written about Apple and the wider technology business for more than a decade with bylines on How-To Geek, PC Mag, iDownloadBlog, and many more. He has also been published in print for Macworld, including cover stories. At iMore, Oliver is involved in daily news coverage and, not being short of opinions, has been known to 'explain' those thoughts in more detail, too. Having grown up using PCs and spending far too much money on graphics card and flashy RAM, Oliver switched to the Mac with a G5 iMac and hasn't looked back. Since then he's seen the growth of the smartphone world, backed by iPhone, and new product categories come and go. Current expertise includes iOS, macOS, streaming services, and pretty much anything that has a battery or plugs into a wall. Oliver also covers mobile gaming for iMore, with Apple Arcade a particular focus. He's been gaming since the Atari 2600 days and still struggles to comprehend the fact he can play console quality titles on his pocket computer.