Apple Raises Prices Of Most Products, But Your iPhone Still Costs The Same (For Now)

Following a Wall Street Journal interview in which Apple's CEO, Tim Cook, said Apple would raise prices, the change is now in effect, with most of the company's devices more expensive. So far, iPads, Macs, home products, and Vision Pro have become more expensive. In the U.S., the iPhone, the Apple Watch, and AirPods still start at the same price point. However, if you take a look at Apple stores in Europe or in South America, like Brazil, the starting price of most products has gotten a big bump that can scare most buyers.

"I've never seen anything like it in any area in over 40 years," said Tim Cook to WSJ. Due to the memory crisis, companies like Samsung, Micron, and SK Hynix are prioritizing server chip demand over RAM for customers. On the other hand, brands like Apple have been increasing RAM on their products to deploy more advanced AI models and better process these new, more intensive tasks. "Unfortunately, price increases are unavoidable. We're doing our best to mitigate the huge increases that are being passed to us, and we've been trying to shield our customers from the increases, but the situation has become unsustainable," said the CEO at the time. 

Among the products that saw price increases are the MacBook Neo, MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, iMac, Mac Studio, base-model iPad, iPad Air, iPad Pro, Apple TV, HomePod, HomePod mini, and Apple Vision Pro. Of all of them, the Mac Studio is the most expensive, as the M4 Max version now starts at $2,499, up from $1,999 when it was released. The M3 Ultra option now starts at $5,299, which is $1,300 more expensive than at launch.

With that, even affordable products like the base-model iPad now start at $449 (up from $349), and Apple's latest fast-selling Mac, the MacBook Neo, which used to cost $599, is now $699. Products that customers shouldn't even consider buying, like the current Apple TV, HomePod, and HomePod mini, also saw price increases. The Apple TV now starts at $199 (up from $129), the HomePod mini costs $129 (up from $99), and the bigger HomePod now costs $349 (up from $299). Interestingly enough, the bigger HomePod now costs the same as it did when the original model was released almost a decade ago, which was one of the reasons Apple ended up discontinuing it.

What users can take into account, however, is that when Apple announces updated Apple TV and HomePod models, which should all be released later this year with Apple Intelligence support, the company might not necessarily raise prices again. Still, it's important to note that even products that struggle to get traction, like the Apple Vision Pro, are more expensive, as it now starts at $3,699, $200 more.

If you're on the verge of updating your old iPhone to a new model, this still might be the best moment. After all, it's not because Apple didn't raise the prices of these devices that they won't see a price increase in the coming months. With new iPhones and Apple Watch models expected later this September, Apple could increase the price of the iPhone 18 Pro, and we also don't know how much the memory crisis could impact the upcoming iPhone Fold. Regarding the regular iPhone 18 and iPhone Air 2, these devices are expected to be released in early 2027, meaning that the iPhone 17 might remain with a similar price for longer.

However, if you look at Europe, Apple has already increased the price of the current iPhone generation. The iPhone 17 in France, for example, now starts at 969 euros, up from 899 euros just a few days ago. The Apple Watch, on the other hand, is expected to get a big revamp with the Ultra model, which could also make it more expensive later this year. Regarding AirPods, Apple has a new model with a camera expected to be released in 2027.

That said, it's still early to say how the memory crisis will continue to affect Apple products. One thing is for sure: Customers should be more mindful of their next purchases, as the company has once again become a much more expensive brand.