A new colour version of the iPhone X has passed through the US FCC certification authority, so is heading to retail very soon. The new colour is described as "Blush Gold" which accompanying images show is a Rose Gold style hue. It does, however, have a high-shine mirror finish on the rear panel.

How well are Apple’s latest run of iPhones selling? Pretty well at first, according to new data from CIRP. In a note, obtained by 9to5Mac, Apple’s sales figures for the final quarter of 2017 were detailed – and they’re better than last year’s.

“In the first full quarter after the launch of its three new models, Apple grew its share relative to Android brands,” continued Lowitz. “If we compare change in share from the September quarter to the December quarter in this year and last year, Apple clearly improved its market position. It gained ten percentage points from the September to the December quarter both years, but as it had a better September quarter in 2017 than in 2016, this resulted in an overall stronger December quarter.”

Not that this is surprising, Apple’s iPhone X has been doing rather well, despite its lofty price tag. Apple still sold more iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus handsets, however, though this, again, will likely be down to price – the iPhone X is definitely too expensive for a lot of users (myself included).

Inside 2018, things aren't looking quite so peachy. Nikkei Asian Review is the latest in a string of analysts and publications slashing their forecasts for iPhone X shipments; allegedly Apple will cut iPhone X production in half inside Q1. That means Nikkei is predicting a 20 million unit total in Q1, alongside KGI's prediction of 18 million. However, compared to Canalys data suggesting 29 million units were shipped inside the final part of 2017, it's looking a bit anaemic.

“Apple experienced a slight downturn from the previous holiday quarter as iPhone volumes reached 77.3 million units, a year-over-year decline of 1.3%. Volumes were still enough to push Apple past Samsung and back into first place in the smartphone market, largely because of iPhone 8, 8 Plus, and iPhone X,” notes IDC.

It added: "Apple continues to prove that having numerous models at various price points bodes well for bringing smartphone owners to iOS. Although demand for the new higher priced iPhone X may not have been as strong as many expected, the overall iPhone lineup appealed to a wider range of consumers in both emerging and developed markets. Apple finished second for the full year in 2017 shipping 215.8 million units, up 0.2% from the 215.4 million units shipped in 2016.”

The reason for the drop? It comes from word inside the Asian supply chain, which is apparently prepping itself for reduced orders direct from Apple. It's thought this is all due to the pricing, which is supposedly too steep for most consumers. While KGI suspects Apple may switch back to LCD, it would be incorrect to place all the blame at the increased cost at the feet of the OLED screen, as investigations have shown Apple has put a massive profit margin on the iPhone X compared to its build cost.

Apple's iPhone X fortunes continue to decline according to new forecasting from several prominent analysts. J.P Morgan has reduced its iPhone X production estimates for Q1 and Q2 2018 by as much as 25%, down from 20 million units for Q1 to only 15 million. Analyst Narci Chang lowered estimates by 44% for Q2, from 18 million units down to 10 million.

Overall iPhone sales forecasts were also reduced from 55 million units to 52 million for Q1 and 45 million down to 42 million for Q2.

While initial Apple sales on launch looked robust, however, average revenue per device was $797, compared to the $755 forecasted average. When you break down the firm's inital reports the company did, in fact, sell fewer handsets year-over-year.

Once again, the takeaway for Apple's $1000 iPhone X experiment seems to be that although there's a market for very high-end price iPhone's, it's a smaller one than Apple expected.

And now analysis by firm Piper Jaffray appears to confirm that suspicion. The company conducted a survey with 1,500 iPhone fans, asking them why they had chosen not to upgrade to an iPhone X. As many as 38% of respondents said the price was offputting, while a higher proportion of 44% said they did not want to upgrade as their existing iPhone was working "fine".