Apple debuts special-edition (PRODUCT)RED iPhone 7, 7 Plus, available in 128GB and 256GB models, starting at $749; iPhone SE storage doubled to 32GB and 128GB
Apple today has taken the wraps off of a new (PRODUCT)RED iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus. The device was unveiled alongside a new iPad and a new social video editing app.
Context & Ripple Effects
Six months after the iPhone 7's September launch at $649/$749/$849, Apple is refreshing the lineup with a special-edition (PRODUCT)RED finish rather than any hardware change — and pairing it with a storage bump for the budget-tier iPhone SE, which jumps to 32GB and 128GB. The move lands alongside a new iPad and a social video editing app, making this a mid-cycle portfolio refresh rather than a product generation.
The RED treatment proves durable: Apple repeats it on the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus a year later, and red resurfaces as a core color option when the $399 iPhone SE arrives in 2020.
First-order effects
- Buyers can now get the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus in (PRODUCT)RED, but only in the 128GB and 256GB tiers starting at $749 — steering the special edition toward higher-margin configurations instead of the $649 base model.
Second-order effects
- The one-year repeat on iPhone 8 turns what looked like a one-off into an annual cadence, giving Apple a predictable spring news beat that refreshes an aging lineup without touching specs or pricing.
Third-order effects
- Color-plus-storage refreshes become Apple's standard mid-cycle lever — the same pattern shows up in the 2020 SE's red option and doubled capacities — letting the company hold price points steady while nudging buyers up the storage ladder between generations.
The trend: Apple is institutionalizing special-edition colors and storage bumps as its recurring mid-cycle refresh mechanism between flagship generations.