Sherwood News

We are so far past peak iPhone hype

Cheaper, AI-powered, and missing a few frills — can the 16e turn things around for Apple’s iPhone?

2/20/25 10:56AM

Five months after the latest iPhone hit the shelves, Apple just dropped a more affordable version: the iPhone 16e.

The 16e sheds some extras like the ultrawide camera and faster wireless charging, but the price, which will start at $599 in the US, is perhaps best summarized as kind-of-wallet-friendly-but-not-as-cheap-as-some-people-hoped. After all, the 2022 iPhone SE, which is now discontinued, was just $429.

Some analysts are blaming the slightly higher-than-expected price on looming tariff threats. But, whatever the reason for the final price, the only question for Apple is: will this latest release breathe some life into slumping iPhone sales?

Please clap

Indeed, the 16e comes as new iPhone hype keeps fading and Apple feels the pinch in core markets. In the US, Apple’s largest region, nearly one-third of iPhone users had held on to their devices for over three years as of last March — up from just 6% in 2015, per CIRP — as buyers struggle to justify getting the latest iPhone unless their current one is on its last legs.

Things are rougher in China, Apple’s second-largest national market: iPhone sales dropped 17% year over year, its steepest annual decline in the region since 2016, losing ground to local brands like Huawei and budget phone maker Vivo. Missing AI features might explain some of that underperformance in China, though it seems that Apple Intelligence is beloved by Apple execs but often berated by some of its users.

With its quarterly revenue slipping despite the holiday season, Apple’s new budget iPhone feels crucial. In 2024, iPhones still made up over half of Apple’s revenue, raking in a whopping $201 billion. But you don’t see many people queuing outside the Apple stores like they used to, and that’s a problem for the world’s largest company.

3d sketch poster trend collage image of healthy salad leaves nutrition rotten iceberg mouth smile lips food diet hand hold fork

The slop bowl recession just sent Chipotle’s stock cratering

Chipotle dropped 18% yesterday, and its woes weighed on the wider slop bowl complex, dragging Cava and Sweetgreen down, too.

Claire Yubin Oh7h

J. Edward Moreno

10/30/25

Most health insurers beat estimates in Q3, but investors have mixed feelings

While generally in line with expectations, medical costs still haven’t come down.

Millie Giles10/30/25

eBay stock slumps on gloomy Q4 outlook despite solid Q3 earnings

Shares of eBay fell as much as 10.5% in premarket trading on Thursday morning after the company gave a lower-than-expected profit forecast for the important holiday shopping season.

The e-commerce giant reported solid numbers for the third quarter on Wednesday, with revenue up 9% as reported to $2.8 billion and gross merchandise volume rising 10% to $20.1 billion, topping the average analyst forecast of $19.4 billion, per Bloomberg.

However, concerns about the future somewhat overshadowed these results.

eBay outlined its profit outlook for the period ending in December to $1.31 to $1.36 a share, with revenue at $2.83 billion to $2.89 billion. According to Bloomberg-compiled data, this broadly matches Wall Street’s estimates for the top line, but misses on the bottom line, with analysts forecasting EPS to come in at $1.39 — suggesting the company expects some further margin pressure.

The company has been facing macroeconomic challenges since the US ended the de minimis tariff exemption in late August, with the online marketplace reliant on shipments. One small silver lining? CFO Peggy Alford highlighted a “less durable trend” on a post-earnings call: that as commodity prices for precious metals boomed, demand for bullion and collectible coins on eBay spiked.