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(Pocket-lint) – Apple has warned that the supply of iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max hardware will be hit by ongoing COVID-19 restrictions at its primary supplier.
Stocks of iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max handsets were already spotty across various storage capacities and color configurations, but Apple says things could get worse.
Apple said in a statement that “COVID-19 restrictions have temporarily impacted the primary iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max assembly facility located in Zhengzhou, China.” As a result, the facility is “currently operating at significantly reduced capacity”. That means that deliveries of new handsets are now expected to be lower than first hoped – a knock-on effect being that those hoping to pick a new iPhone up at retail might have to wait. Delivery estimates were already weeks-long before the weekend’s announcement.
“We now expect lower iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max shipments than we previously anticipated and customers will experience longer wait times to receive their new products,” Apple’s statement adds before saying that it is working closely with its manufacturing partner to get things back up and running.
The partner in question is Foxconn, with reports having previously suggested that the factor was at the center of an industrial estate-wide lockdown. At the time it was thought that the impact on Apple would be minimal, with Foxconn having already created a closed loop – having employees who live on-site eat their meals in their dorms to reduce the risk of picking up the virus.
Notably, this issue doesn’t affect the iPhone 14 or iPhone 14 Plus, two devices that are manufactured at other plants but are also said to be in less demand than their Pro counterparts.
Writing by Oliver Haslam.
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