Luong Thanh Binh, a student in Hanoi, has been seeking a pink IPhone 6S Plus 64 GB for two weeks.

“I visited many private shops in Hanoi and I was told that the products were running out,” she complained. “I was told to wait some more time, but I wonder how long.”

Quang Trung, the owner of a private shop, confirmed that iPhone 6, 6S and 6S Plus are in short supply as there have been no new arrivals. 

“Some shops still have unsold products, but they don’t have the versions which can satisfy customers’ requirements in memory and color,” he said.

Also according to Trung, since the supply is short, dealers have raised the prices by VND200,000-500,000.

Used iPhone 6 16 GB international version is now priced at VND3.8 million, while the 64 GB version is VND4.3 million, or VND300,000 higher than one month ago.

Meanwhile, iPhone 6S Plus sells for VND7.5 million and VND8.5 million for 16 GB and 64 GB versions, an increase of VND500,000.

By contrast, newer models including iPhone 7 Plus, iPhone 8, 8 Plus and iPhone X have stable prices. iPhone 8 Plus is still sold at VND16 million, while used iPhone X VND21 million.
 
Smartphone dealers said they prefer selling previous-generation products because they can bring higher profits, while the sales of iPhone 8 and iPhone X are at ‘moderate level’. 

Minh Duc, the owner of a chain of private shops in Hanoi, said the demand has unexpectedly soared because students are returning to school.

“University students need iPhones for their daily use and study. Since they cannot afford iPhone X, they tend to choose previous-generation iPhones, which have reasonable prices and high quality,” he explained.

“The demand for previous-generation products is high, but we don’t have products to sell. The latest-generation iPhone 8 and iPhone X are unattractive to the majority of customers because of the high prices,” he said.

Observers noted that locked iPhone prices are also on the rise. iPhone 6S locked is VND400,000 more expensive, while iPhone 7 Plus VND800,000 are more expensive.

The demand has bounced back because a new ICCID code has been found which allows people to 'cheat' Apple to unlock iPhones and turn it into an international version. With the code, users do not need Gevey sim.

However, customers have been advised not to choose locked products because Apple, sooner or later, will find the solution to block the code.

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Trong Dat