On Monday Patently Apple posted a report that stated that "A pair of new Taiwan tech reports posted this afternoon confirm that the high-end iPhone 12 Pro and especially the iPhone 12 Pro Max are proving to be far more popular than previously expected and are currently out of stock globally."

Today Tianfeng International's analyst Ming-Chi Kuo is claiming the very same news about Apple's high-end iPhones and more. Below are the key points from Kuo.

Main Points in Kuo's Report

1. iPhone. Demand for iPhone 12 Pro and Pro Max was better than expected, offsetting the lower-than-expected demand for 12 and 12 mini, so overall iPhone shipments were better than expected. We are looking at the shipment momentum of the iPhone 12 series in 1H21 and the replacement demand for the new 2H21 iPhone.

2. iPad. The demand for the new iPad Air is better than expected. Looking forward to 2021, we predict that the growth momentum of the iPad will come from the adoption of new technologies (such as mini LED, 5G support, etc.) and the new low-priced iPad in 2H21.

3. Apple Watch. The demand for the new Apple Watch 6 and SE is better than expected. We predict that the shipment momentum of the new Apple Watch in 2021 will benefit from innovative health management functions and improved design.

4. Mac. Demand for MacBook models equipped with M1 is better than expected. We are looking forward to the new MacBook models that are expected to be released in 2H21, equipped with Apple Silicon and a new design.

On AirPods

According to Kuo's report, AirPods shipments are lower than expected, and it is predicted that AirPods shipments will remain flat or decline by 5-10% in 1H21, which is lower than the market’s estimated 20% YoY growth.

Kuo claims that the supply of upstream parts is tight, and iPhone has a higher priority than AirPods in obtaining shared parts.

Lastly, the shipping time of AirPods 3 may be postponed to the end of 2Q21, so the replacement demand will be more obvious in 2H21.