Apple’s 20th anniversary iPhone redesign may be pretty expensive, here’s why

Apple is planning a ‘major shake-up’ for the iPhone in 2027, in celebration of the iPhone’s 20th anniversary. While we don’t know too many details about the redesign, we do know one thing: the company wants to utilize a lot more glass.

This special 20th anniversary iPhone model likely would’ve come with a price premium regardless. However, it may come with an even heftier one than usual.

At least right now, it seems like hefty tariffs on China will stick around. At the moment, there is an exemption for most of the tech sector, though that won’t last forever.

Apple is capable of manufacturing a lot of iPhones in India, but they simply cannot move all iPhone production there on a whim. That process will take time. Right now, Apple can manufacture “roughly a third of annual US demand” in India.

While Apple does plan on shifting a lot more iPhone production to India to skirt current tariff policies, manufacturing cutting-edge tech outside of China currently isn’t feasible. From Bloomberg:

While Apple’s manufacturing in India has reached parity with China in terms of current iPhone quality, the 20-year anniversary models are extraordinarily complex. They’ll require new parts and production techniques, making it far from a certainty that Apple will be able to build those outside of China. At some point, yes, but certainly not by the year 2027. Keep in mind: Apple has never produced a major new product design outside China for the first go-around.

In the past, Apple CEO Tim Cook has praised the level of manufacturing expertise in China. While the company would love to diversify from China, it seems like it would currently be difficult to launch a cutting-edge iPhone without any manufacturing in China.

As it stands today, there is at least a 145% tariff on China, and it can reach as high as 245%. That doesn’t bode well for the 20th anniversary iPhone if everything stays the same.

My favorite Apple accessory recommendations:

• Anker 25K Compact Power Bank with retractable cable
• MOFT Magnetic Wallet Stand, fits up to 3 cards
• AirTag 4-pack (on sale for 20% off!)
• Anker MagSafe 2-in-1 Wireless Charging Stand with Qi2
• AirPods Pro 2 (USB-C)
• SanDisk Extreme 2TB USB-C SSD, up to 1050MB/s
• Aulumu Vegan Leather Case for iPhone 16 Pro

Follow Michael: X/Twitter, Bluesky, Instagram