Apple shares fell 1.53 per cent in regular trading and lost a further 0.23 per cent overnight after Jefferies analysts, led by Edison Lee, told clients that supply-chain checks suggest the all-glass iPhone scheduled for September 2027 has been cancelled.
"We view this as a major setback to efforts to bring in higher-priced iPhones amid soaring memory costs," the analysts wrote, adding that they had cut their earnings estimates. They had expected the device to carry a price tag of $2,060, and warned that extending the same design language across the rest of the iPhone line-up would have pushed prices up there too. With the all-glass model off the table, "the foldable iPhone will now be the only key driver of higher [average sales price] and margin," they said.
The note adds to an unusually cautious mood on Wall Street. At least six major firms now rate Apple as a "sell", a rare position for the world's largest consumer technology company.
Conflicting signals on a glassier future
Not everyone is convinced the project is dead. Mark Gurman, who closely tracks Apple, reported that the company still intends to launch a "glass-centric" version of the phone in 2027. He added that the firm is preparing for a leadership transition from Tim Cook to John Ternus as chief executive.
The distinction between "all-glass" and "glass-centric" matters. Gurman said the 2027 models, known internally as V73 and V74, will use glass on the front and back, with the material curving into the sides and a metal band running through the middle. That is a step up from today's glass-and-aluminium designs, but it is not the fully glass-and-metal replacement once envisaged.
"A more aspirational version championed by Apple's design studio used even more glass, instead of metal, but was scrapped early on. With that approach, the company encountered problems connecting the glass panels together. The design didn't hold up when Apple had to figure out how to produce it at large volumes, according to the people."
That more radical design, championed by Apple's industrial-design studio, was abandoned early because engineers could not reliably join the glass panels and the concept failed when scaled for mass production.
Why the iPhone price strategy matters
Apple has spent years trying to lift the average selling price of the iPhone, partly by introducing premium materials, larger screens and new form factors. A $2,060 all-glass flagship would have been the clearest signal yet that the company wants to move further upmarket. The cancellation therefore leaves the forthcoming foldable iPhone as the main lever for higher prices and fatter margins.
It also lands at a delicate moment. With memory costs climbing and several analysts already bearish on the stock, any sign that Apple's premium product pipeline is thinning risks reinforcing concerns about future growth.
What to watch next
Investors will now look for clarity on two fronts. First, whether the glass-centric iPhone due in 2027 can still deliver enough visual and tactile premium to justify a higher price. Second, whether the foldable iPhone can compensate for the loss of the all-glass flagship. Apple typically unveils its new iPhones in September, so the next two years of product road maps will be parsed carefully by analysts and shareholders alike.