iPhone XR was launched in October this year
Apple's new iPhone models aren't as much in demand as the company would've hoped, and analysts are already modifying their predictions for overall shipments in this quarter and even the next. Major Japanese wireless carriers were last week reported to be considering cutting the price of iPhone XR, and now NTT Docomo is the first to announce the price reduction. In a move to boost sales in one of its most important markets, Apple has introduced larger subsidies to carriers, so that the iPhone XR can be offered at low contractual prices. Earlier on, users had to pay JPY 36,000 (roughly Rs. 22,500) for the iPhone XR 64GB when they opted for the 24-month contract on NTT Docomo. Now, after the revised subsidies, the device cost amount to JPY 24,000 (roughly Rs. 15,000).
9to5Mac first spotted this change on the NTT Docomo website, and it is expected that all carriers in Japan will follow suit. As reported by The Wall Street Journal last week, this drop in the 24-month contract price is due to lower than expected demand of the iPhone XR in the market.
Notably, Apple's strategic move in Japan doesn't mean that price cuts for the iPhone XR will be announced in other markets as well. The company is rather stingy with discounted pricing, and it only offers them in markets that the company finds some amount of benefit in.
Due to lower than expected demand of the new iPhone models, Rosenblatt earlier revised its production estimate for the new iPhone models from 90 to 95 million units to 88 million units for the holiday quarter. It recently, again revised it down to 74 million units for the current quarter, and 39 million for Q1 2019.
Catch the latest from the Consumer Electronics Show on Gadgets 360, at our CES 2026 hub.