Queues for the opening of the Apple Hongdae retailer.
For the primary time because the iPhone 3GS, South Korea might get the iPhone 16 in September, concurrently the US.
Apple’s smartphone launches are likely to encompass day-one gross sales in a couple of key territories, with others arriving within the weeks that comply with. For South Korea, this tends to be a launch weeks, or perhaps a month, after many different main markets.
For 2024, that would change. In keeping with sources of The Korea Instances, Apple is bringing the discharge in South Korea ahead. Doubtlessly making it one of many preliminary launch international locations for the brand new iPhone fashions.
One trade official stated that preparations are underway for the iPhone launch. Nonetheless, resulting from Apple’s tradition of secrecy and of minimal communications with telecom companions, carriers can’t verify launch dates earlier than Apple makes its official announcement.
Present hypothesis is that the launch of the iPhone 16 might happen on September 10.
One other spoken to by the report stated that the early launch “remains at the stage of a likely rumor,” admitting that it’s nonetheless “hard to predict” till Apple’s launch.
The delay in South Korea has beforehand been attributed to a couple elements, together with Apple’s confidentiality insurance policies. Nonetheless, Apple additionally has to deal with Korea’s certification system.
The Nationwide Radio Analysis Company discloses info on new gadgets via its web site. Submitting the iPhone to testing via the NRRA might imply specs leak forward of the launch.
Whereas the danger of regulatory disclosure is current, Apple might push ahead with a South Korean preliminary launch because it’s seeing good progress within the area. Within the fiscal yr ending September 2023, Apple noticed a 550% improve in working revenue over the earlier yr.
South Korean customers aged beneath 30 additionally tend to purchase an Android machine, then half change over to the iPhone.
Apple additionally opened a retailer in Gangnam in March 2023 and in Hongdae in January 2024, giving customers within the nation extra alternative to work together with the model.
Nonetheless, Apple’s existence in South Korea is not with out troubles. Discover My curiously would not work within the nation resulting from native legal guidelines.
There’s additionally the ever-present dominance of native tech large Samsung within the nation to deal with.