One must suppose that Apple saw it coming when they introduced no less than two smartphones simultaneously, but with a staggered product launch schedule. There were two iPhones unveiled: one the iPhone 8, successor to the iPhone 7 and its derivatives; the other the iPhone X, a high-end premium edition device that is the celebratory nod to the first decade of the entire product line. Its insides have been filled with some of the most awesome tech features ever put inside a smartphone, and that has drawn a lot of potential buyers not scared off by the $999 price tag.

Such has been their interest in the X that the other models are getting snubbed.

Preferring X over 8

The Apple iPhone 8 is due to become available this coming Friday, September 22. Yet, despite its significant improvements from the 7 – True Tone Retina HD and wireless charging, to name a few – Apple consumers do not seem to be flocking to pre-order it or its 8 Plus variant. It does not take a genius to figure out why: people are just more interested in the more tech-beefy iPhone X (the X being pronounced “10”).

Ming-Chi Kuo, an analyst for KGI Securities who has made some accurate predictions on general iPhone trends, has remarked that sooner or later the greater public interest for the extensively-hyped anniversary model iPhone X will cut into possible iPhone 8 pre-ordering.

As a result, Apple consumers who have yet to receive a launch date ship order for their 8/Plus will instead get them about two weeks after the official launch date on Friday.

Most expensive iPhone

The fact that Apple is actually shortening the shipping order time from the usual 3-6 weeks is a sign that they’re trying to get the iPhone 8 out fast, before the iPhone X launches in November.

After all, the disparity of tech goodies in both machines has made the 8 and 8 Plus come across as a mere S refit rather than a full upgrade. Despite being priced at $699 and becoming available soon, consumers are of the opinion that the later release of the X model will be enough time to put together $999 to buy that instead.

The iPhone X currently holds the crown as the most expensive smartphone ever made by Apple, but that dollar-short-of-a-grand price tag has simply enticed more people to hold out to buy that instead. Meanwhile, the iPhone 8 looks to be on the verge of being sidelined completely, as the number of pre-orders for the X may cause supply issues as we get closer to the holidays.