If you ever needed proof that the coronavirus could affect the iPhone, it came in an investor update from Apple.
The novel coronavirus is sure having an impact on people, and it’s beginning to make a dent on the technology industry, too.
After shutting down factories in China and cancelling Mobile World Congress, with other industry events also being pulled this year, Apple has reported that investors will likely see some impact from the coronavirus, meaning a slightly lower return this year on the back of slowed iPhone manufacturing.
Apple has said its worldwide iPhone supply is “temporarily constrained”, and while manufacturing sites are located outside of affected areas in the Hubei province and have opened, Apple says “they are ramping up more slowly than we had anticipated”, with the health and well-being of its workers taking priority.
Apple hasn’t said if manufacturing plants of other products have been affected, and typically doesn’t comment on rumours or speculation, so if the manufacturing slow down has affected upcoming products, we may never know, short of Apple having a lower supply at release than expected.
Hopefully by the time Apple is ready to release a new product, its product line will be back up to full speed, and we’ll all be left none the wiser. With a rumoured iPad launch in the coming weeks, it’s possible Apple’s production levels will be back up to standard, and exactly that will occur.
