Apple raises older iPhone prices in India after iPhone 18 Pro, Duo launch

Apple has raised prices of the iPhone 16, 17e, 17 and Air in India after launching the iPhone 18 Pro series and iPhone Duo, with the biggest hike reaching Rs 65,000

Apple has raised the prices of its existing iPhone models in India following the launch of the iPhone 18 Pro series and its first foldable iPhone Duo. The price revision affects the iPhone 16, iPhone 17e, iPhone 17 and iPhone Air, with some storage variants now costing up to Rs 65,000 more than their launch prices.

 

The iPhone 17, for instance, now starts at Rs 99,900, up from Rs 82,900. The iPhone Air starts at Rs 1,49,900, compared with its launch price of Rs 1,19,900. Apple has also raised the prices of the iPhone 16 and iPhone 17e.

iPhone 17, iPhone Air new and old prices

iPhone Air

 

 

256GB:

• Old price: Rs 1,19,900
• New price: Rs 1,49,900

512GB:

• Old price: Rs 1,39,900
• New price: Rs 1,74,900

1TB:

• Old price: Rs 1,59,900
• New price: Rs 2,24,900

iPhone 17

 

256GB: 

• Old price: Rs 82,900
• New price: Rs 99,900

512GB: 

• Old price: Rs 1,02,900
• New price: Rs 1,24,900

iPhone 17e

 

256GB: 

• Old price: Rs 64,900
• New price: Rs 79,900

512GB: 

• Old price: Rs 84,900
• New price: Rs 1,04,900

iPhone 16

 

128GB: 

• Old price: Rs 79,900
• New price:  Rs 89,900

The iPhone Air has therefore seen the steepest increase among the two line-ups. The 1TB model is now more than 40 per cent more expensive than its original launch price.

Apple had warned about price hikes, but spared iPhones initially

The price increase comes after months of warnings from Apple about rising memory and storage costs. In June, then Apple’s former CEO Tim Cook told The Wall Street Journal that price increases had become unavoidable as the company faced sharp increases in the cost of memory and storage chips. Apple had been absorbing some of those higher costs, but Cook said the situation had become unsustainable.

 

Apple subsequently increased prices for several Mac and iPad models in India in June. The MacBook Pro, MacBook Air and iPad line-ups were among the products affected, while the iPhone was left unchanged at the time.

That changed after Apple's September 9 event. With the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max taking the place of last year's Pro models, Apple has now passed higher costs on to the existing iPhone 17 and Air line-up as well.

 

The higher prices come amid a broader memory chip shortage, with rising demand from AI data centres putting pressure on supplies of DRAM, NAND and other components.

What Apple unveiled at ‘Surprise and shine’

Apple's September 9 event brought the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max, along with the company's first foldable iPhone, the iPhone Duo. The company also introduced the Apple Watch Series 12, Apple Watch Ultra 4 and AirPods 5.

 

iPhone 18 Pro series and iPhone Duo

 

The iPhone 18 Pro starts at Rs 1,64,900 for 256GB, while the iPhone 18 Pro Max starts at Rs 1,79,900. Both use Apple's A20 Pro chip and come with upgraded camera systems, including a variable-aperture main camera. The Pro Max offers up to 45 hours of video playback.

The iPhone Duo is Apple's first foldable iPhone. It has a 7.6-inch inner display and a 5.4-inch outer display, with an A20 Pro chip and a dual 48MP camera system. It starts at Rs 2,99,900 in India for 256GB and goes up to Rs 4,49,900 for the 2TB model.

 

Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4

 

The Apple Watch Series 12 starts at Rs 56,900 in India. It introduces a new Health Sensing System, higher-frequency heart rate and heart rate variability measurements, a readiness score and the S11 chip.

 

The Apple Watch Ultra 4 starts at Rs 1,09,900. It also gets the S11 chip and new health sensors, along with up to 45 hours of outdoor workout tracking.

 

AirPods 5

 

Apple also introduced AirPods 5 with open-ear active noise cancellation, improved acoustics, Siri AI features and Live Translation. The AirPods 5 are priced at Rs 14,900 in India, while the version with a wireless charging case costs Rs 17,900.