- iPhone Prices in China Drop Ahead of 618 Shopping Holiday - Considering the Staggered Release Rumor for iPhone 18 - TSMC Investing Another $20B in AZ Plants - Federighi to Testify in xAI Suit Against Apple and OpenAI - Apple and Epic Enter Months-Long Back and Forth on Outside Commissions - Sponsored by NordLayer: Get an exclusive offer - up to 22% off NordLayer yearly plans plus 10% on top with coupon code: macosken-10-NORDLAYER at nordlayer.com/macosken - Catch Ken on Mastodon - @macosken@mastodon.social - Send Ken an email: info@macosken.com - Chat with us on Patreon for as little as $1 a month. Support the show at Patreon.com/macosken

iPhone News, Chip Supply, and Court Cases - MOSK: 05.18.2026

Mac OS Ken

[SPEAKER_A] This is Mac OS Ken. News around iPhone, TSMC sends more money Arizona's way, and word on a couple of court cases. It is Monday, the 18th of May, 2026. I'm Ken Ray, and this is news from Mac OS Ken, brought to you by yours truly and sponsored by NordLayer. A toggle-ready network security platform built for today's business. Get savings on top of savings with offer code macOSKen-10-NordLayer at nordlayer.com/macosken. This show is also supported by people like you, patrons through Patreon. Find out more and add your support at patreon.com/macosken. Macosken. Apple's doing that thing it does this time of year, just about every year, in China. MacRumors says the Cupertino company has cut prices on some iPhones in the Middle Kingdom ahead of this year's 618 shopping holiday. Citing a piece from the Global Times, MacRumors says both JD.com and Tmall have dropped prices for the iPhone 17 line. According to the report, prices on the iPhone 17 Pro series are down 1,000 yuan, a discount of roughly $138 US. That brings them to a temporary starting price of 6,999 yuan, roughly $968. Meanwhile, iPhone 17 seems to bring a one-two savings combo. MacRumors says some configurations are now available for 4,499 yuan, around $622, including discounts, bringing it well under the 6,000 yuan threshold for China's national trade-in subsidy. That subsidy is said by the site to knock an additional 15% off of qualifying devices, with that discount capped at 500 yuan. One could easily see those discounts adding to an already stellar year for Apple in China. Cupertino's own reported just under $31 billion in revenue in Greater China for the March quarter, That was up 28% versus the same quarter a year earlier, according to Apple CEO Tim Cook.

iPhone News, Chip Supply, and Court Cases - MOSK: 05.18.2026

Read the full transcript

The candid version is on a podcast,
not the earnings call.

iPhone News, Chip Supply, and Court Cases - MOSK: 05.18.2026

Read the full transcript

The candid version is on a podcast, not the earnings call.

The candid version is on a podcast,
not the earnings call.