Apple Starts Phasing Out the iPhone 14 and iPhone SE in Europe

iPhone 14 rear view standing against plants Credit: Thai Nguyen
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Following a report last week that Apple was preparing to pull some of its older iPhone models out of the European Union, the company now appears to be winding down sales in at least some EU countries. As of this writing, the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus are now showing as unavailable on the Apple Store in Switzerland, with other countries likely to follow.

The move comes as a result of the European Commission’s mandate that all electronic devices sold in the EU must support USB-C by December 28, 2024. The EU legislation used the term “placed on the market” to refer to the cutoff, which led some to believe that it wouldn’t apply to models released before the deadline, but it seems it refers to when specific units were manufactured, not necessarily when they lineup was released as a whole.

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In other words, Apple and other resellers should be able to continue selling Lightning-equipped iPhones that are already “on the market” — that is, any existing inventory — but they won’t be able to import iPhones without USB-C ports after December 28.

This is likely why not all of the Apple stores are in sync. The older iPhone models will likely become unavailable as each store (and the online inventory in each country’s store) runs out of units. The Swiss store lacks the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus, but it’s still selling the iPhone SE, while it appears to be business as usual for all three models in Germany, France, and Spain. In-store availability will likely continue, with one report saying that Swiss stores will stock the iPhone 14 until December 28.

iPhone SE 2022 at Apple Store

It’s uncertain if Apple will continue selling existing stock into the new year. In theory, it should still be permitted to sell off anything already in its stores, but the company may choose to set a firm cut-off across the EU for brand consistency. Instead, it could hand off that stock to authorized resellers, who will also be able to continue selling the Lightning-equipped iPhones until their stock is depleted.

Since Switzerland isn’t a member of the European Union, it’s not entirely clear if Apple is handling things differently in that country. Switzerland does participate in the EU single market, so it’s not impacted by any EU-wide trading restrictions. However, it’s passed its own similar regulation to align with the EU policy, which could have different implications for Apple. For example, it might include a more restrictive rule that prohibits Apple from selling off its existing inventory (the text of the law says only that devices “widely available on the market must be capable of being charged using a USB-C connection,” but the details on how to implement this change have been left to the country’s Federal Office of Communications (OFCOM).

Regardless of the specific timeline, it seems that the iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, and iPhone SE will be disappearing from European stores in the coming weeks. Significantly, this will make the 2023 iPhone 15 the lowest-priced model that will be available in the EU, putting the cost of entry for an iPhone between 849 to 879 Euros, depending on the country — a significant jump over the much more affordable iPhone SE, which sells between €529 and € 549.

However, that won’t be the status quo for long, as the iPhone SE 4 is expected to arrive in early 2025, which will naturally sport a USB-C port. By next fall, the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus will be discontinued worldwide to make room for Apple’s iPhone 17 lineup.



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