Silverman: Shopping for an iPhone 14 Pro or Pro Max? Here are tips for finding one. - Houston Chronicle

Checking Apple’s tract astatine this writing, a caller iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max won’t beryllium delivered until Dec. 30. By the clip you work this, it whitethorn instrumentality adjacent longer.

While supplies of immoderate hot, caller gadget tin beryllium choky during the vacation buying season, the severity is antithetic for iPhones astatine this clip of year. It’s truthful antithetic that Apple issued a uncommon quality merchandise informing that disappointment was apt successful your future.

“COVID-19 restrictions person temporarily impacted the superior iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max assembly installation located successful Zhengzhou, China,” the institution said successful a Nov. 6 statement. “The installation is presently operating astatine importantly reduced capacity. As we person done passim the COVID-19 pandemic, we are prioritizing the wellness and information of the workers successful our proviso chain.”

The connection went connected to accidental that request remained precocious for the Pro models, and that “we present expect little iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max shipments than we antecedently anticipated and customers volition acquisition longer hold times to person their caller products.”

The proviso constraints whitethorn get worse aft workers astatine Foxconn’s sprawling iPhone manufacturing installation successful Zhengzhou, China, connected Tuesday rioted implicit lockdown moving conditions and delayed bonus payments.

And conscionable past week, Best Buy’s main enforcement warned that the 14 Pro enactment would beryllium hard to find successful that company’s big-box stores. More astir this successful a moment. 

The problem, for the astir part, doesn't use to the non-pro versions of the iPhone 14 and 14 Plus. They are the aforesaid sizes arsenic the Pro and Pro Max, but without the precocious features that let Apple to complaint a $200 premium. (The 14 Pro starts astatine $999, the basal 14 astatine $799. The 14 Pro Max starts astatine $1,099, the 14 Plus astatine $899.)

A speedy cheque of Houston-area Apple stores shows that, not lone are they readily available, but you tin get 1 delivered successful conscionable a fewer hours alternatively than days oregon weeks. Reuters reported past period that the 14 Plus, successful particular, is selling less units than Apple expected, causing the institution to trim the fig of orders for that model.

So what tin you bash if you oregon a recipient of your largesse truly wants an iPhone 14 Pro oregon Pro Max? Here are the suggestions I offered my person so  that she scored a 14 Pro. 

• Check your cellular telephone carrier. Apple whitethorn not person its Pro models successful stock, but there’s a accidental your wireless work will. My person is simply a T-Mobile customer, and I suggested she look determination first. Bingo! She was capable to bid a gold, 128-GB Pro connected Nov. 15 that arrived a fewer days later, and she didn't person to alteration her compartment program oregon motion a caller contract. 

Whether you tin get an iPhone 14 Pro successful clip for Christmas giving (or getting) from T-Mobile depends connected the colour and retention size you choose. For example, the Deep Purple, 256-gigabyte Pro ships by Dec. 2. But the much accepted Space Black and Silver models volition vessel Dec. 26 to Jan. 9. 

Not each carriers person them available. A spot cheque astatine AT&T of antithetic colors and configurations shows the Pro enactment won’t vessel until aft Christmas. At Verizon, the Deep Purple 14 Pro successful 128-GB, 256-GB and 1-terabyte configurations is available immediately astatine this writing, and whitethorn beryllium picked up successful immoderate of the company’s stores. But different colors are backordered and whitethorn not get successful clip for Christmas. 

(Each year, Apple issues a Pro exemplary successful a unsocial color, and Deep Purple is it for 2022. It was reportedly successful immense request erstwhile the 14 Pro and Pro Max launched, thing Apple apt anticipated, and manufactured much accordingly. That whitethorn explicate wherefore this colour is often disposable erstwhile others aren’t.)

If you’ve been considering changing carriers, buying a 14 Pro whitethorn beryllium an accidental to bash so. Some of the smaller carriers that sometimes person little rates person 14 Pros. Mint Mobile – the compartment supplier partially owned by histrion Ryan Reynolds – has the Pro and is offering bundles with a 50 percent discount connected a 1-year work plan.

A fewer carriers are offering sign-up deals with iPhone 14 models, though it’s uncommon to find 1 with the Pro versions. Don’t expect to find galore Black Friday/Cyber Monday deals connected them, either.

• Big container stores. The CEO of Best Buy’s protestations to the contrary, you whitethorn beryllium capable to find a 14 Pro there. At this writing, the retailer’s website shows assorted configurations of the Pro shipping to get arsenic aboriginal arsenic Monday oregon Tuesday, and successful immoderate cases – depending connected the bearer mentation – it whitethorn beryllium disposable for contiguous pickup in-store.

But hide MicroCenter, the different big-box gadgeteer successful Houston, which is retired of banal some for shipping and in-store, based connected a hunt of its website.

• Amazon. The online elephantine is truthful retired of iPhone 14 Pros that a hunt determination brings up conscionable cases and older models, specified arsenic the 13 Pro and Pro Max. Apple has its ain branded outpost connected Amazon, and clicking connected the iPhone tab astatine this penning reveals a leafage that starts with the iPhone 13 line – nary modular 14s oregon Pluses. 

Again, I stress that this is simply a snapshot of the concern arsenic I’m banging distant connected my keyboard. If you’re successful the market, beryllium persistent and support looking – oregon beryllium consenting to driblet backmost to the more-attainable non-pro models. 

dsilverman@outlook.com
twitter.com/dsilverman