Apple slashes iPhone 5s price in India by almost half

Posted:
in iPhone
Apple on Monday cut the price of the iPhone 5s in India down to 24,999 rupees ($372), a sharp reduction from the 44,500 rupees ($663) the device was selling for in September.




Today's cut actually marks the third time in three months Apple has adjusted prices, according to the Times of India. Apple's earlier cuts took place around the Hindu festivals of Dussehra and Diwali.

The 5s is said to represent almost half of iPhone sales in the country.

The latest cut is part of an Apple plan to double Indian sales during the December quarter, the Times' trade sources said. An executive at an unidentified local cellphone chain noted that by targeting the 16,000-27,000 rupee price band, Apple can gain leverage on Samsung's similarly-priced A- and E-series phones, which haven't been updated recently.

Until relatively recently Apple has struggled to gain marketshare in India, where the triple threat of high import taxes, a weak currency, and low wages compared to the West often prices iPhones out of people's hands. The iPhone 6s started at 62,000 rupees -- or about $955 -- when it launched in India this October, making it a full $306 more expensive than in the U.S.

The company's surge in India during the past year has ben attributed primarily to discounts, buybacks, and installment options, but also due to a wider reseller network. The iPhone is dwarfed however by devices from Samsung and Micromax, which are typically more affordable.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 32
    jungmarkjungmark Posts: 6,926member
    This proves the 5S was a failure. /s

    It'd be bigger news of the 6S was slashed. 
  • Reply 2 of 32
    5S is a great phone. jumped to the 6, and while it's also good, I miss the small size and usability of the 5S.
    napoleon_phoneapart
  • Reply 3 of 32
    irelandireland Posts: 17,798member
    Darn thing is €519 here. Was €499 last year I think.
    edited December 2015
  • Reply 4 of 32
    calicali Posts: 3,494member
    Great News! I Hope India is Apple's 2nd china.
  • Reply 5 of 32
    jungmark said:
    This proves the 5S was a failure. /s

    It'd be bigger news of the 6S was slashed. 
    Can we assume you play captain obvious on TV?

    This is big news as it gets the primary hooks into a major market where Apple hasn't played well to date, due to the byzantine phone franchise model.  There are no '99 Rupee' iPhone deals in India.  The fact that the 5s is 1/2 of current sales says that Apple can sell a lot more if they drop the price.  And since Apple rarely discounts it's top end device, to compete with the Android 'high end' in India, the market has set the price.

    India is probably the biggest untapped market (in terms of tech savvy, relatively high income people*)
    The keys for Apple to win in any market  is to  exploit two critical things:
    1) the stickiness of the apple ecosystem
    2) Metcalfe's Law (The value of your (first) iPhone increase's proportional to the square of the number of people you interact with who have an iPhone)


    edited December 2015 radarthekatargonaut
  • Reply 6 of 32
    knowitallknowitall Posts: 1,648member
    It also means that Apple is asking way to much in Europe and the U.S.
    I'm expecting a fair price for the iPhone 6s/+ say $300/$350. Similar for the 7 next year.
    Maybe then, Apple will stop burning its money and do something useful with it (100 billion will buy you 10 Mars trips or all Africa's wild parks with an army to protect it from (ivory) poachers).
  • Reply 7 of 32
    radarthekatradarthekat Posts: 3,842moderator
    I think Apple's price cut in India accomplishes at least these two objectives:
    It tests a lower price point to see if volume sufficiently makes up for a lower price.
    it clears the higher price slot for another model, which presumably would be the rumored updated 4" iPhone.
    Prof_Peabody
  • Reply 8 of 32
    Not sure I like the move. Why dilute the brand value in a third world country? 
  • Reply 9 of 32
    apple ][apple ][ Posts: 9,233member
    Not sure I like the move. Why dilute the brand value in a third world country? 

    It doesn't really bother me, since it is the iPhone 5s that we are talking about afterall, which is some generations behind the newest one of course.
  • Reply 10 of 32
    knowitall said:
    It also means that Apple is asking way to much in Europe and the U.S.
    I'm expecting a fair price for the iPhone 6s/+ say $300/$350. Similar for the 7 next year.
    Maybe then, Apple will stop burning its money and do something useful with it (100 billion will buy you 10 Mars trips or all Africa's wild parks with an army to protect it from (ivory) poachers).
    I'm expecting you to buy another phone if you don't like Apples prices 
  • Reply 11 of 32
    apple ][apple ][ Posts: 9,233member

    knowitall said:
    It also means that Apple is asking way to much in Europe and the U.S.
    I'm expecting a fair price for the iPhone 6s/+ say $300/$350. Similar for the 7 next year.
    Maybe then, Apple will stop burning its money and do something useful with it (100 billion will buy you 10 Mars trips or all Africa's wild parks with an army to protect it from (ivory) poachers).
    If you think that the iPhone 7 is going to cost $300-$350, then I can confidently say that your thought process is quite delusional and you will be a bit disappointed next year. :#
  • Reply 12 of 32

    It's cheaper to buy a 5S in India than it is in Canada. Still sitting at $599 here. The 6S pricing scheme is bad here too. Could more than likely be attributed to the awful CDN dollar though.

    edited December 2015
  • Reply 13 of 32
    maestro64maestro64 Posts: 5,043member
    I think Apple's price cut in India accomplishes at least these two objectives:
    It tests a lower price point to see if volume sufficiently makes up for a lower price.
    it clears the higher price slot for another model, which presumably would be the rumored updated 4" iPhone.

    yes I would agree, it is also a way to clear the channels out to bring in a new product. Cutting the price on a product you are going to EOL very soon down not hurt brand value. They can also begin selling the trade in phones and have an idea on what price people will buy.
  • Reply 14 of 32
    I think Apple's price cut in India accomplishes at least these two objectives:
    It tests a lower price point to see if volume sufficiently makes up for a lower price.
    it clears the higher price slot for another model, which presumably would be the rumored updated 4" iPhone.
    You make good points.  Only problem is, in a country like India, more & more users are flocking toward bigger screen smartphones (ie: bigger than 4.7").  Right now, you can a decent mid-range 5"-screen Android phone for around the same price as a price-reduced iPhone 5s.  Given that buyers in India are very value conscious and prefer bigger screens, what's the market potential for an upgraded 4" iPhone? Sounds like, given those market dynamics, Apple would have to sell the iPhone 6 at around $399US to gain decent traction there.
  • Reply 15 of 32
    knowitall said:
     10 Mars trips 
    ...something useful ;)

    Thinking more about it, if they'd decide to take a rocket load of Samsung phones with them to dump them there, that would actually be useful :)
  • Reply 16 of 32
    knowitallknowitall Posts: 1,648member
    knowitall said:
     10 Mars trips 
    ...something useful ;)

    Thinking more about it, if they'd decide to take a rocket load of Samsung phones with them to dump them there, that would actually be useful :)
    It would, I agree.
    But it would advertise the wrong product.
  • Reply 17 of 32
    knowitallknowitall Posts: 1,648member

    I think Apple's price cut in India accomplishes at least these two objectives:
    It tests a lower price point to see if volume sufficiently makes up for a lower price.
    it clears the higher price slot for another model, which presumably would be the rumored updated 4" iPhone.
    You make good points.  Only problem is, in a country like India, more & more users are flocking toward bigger screen smartphones (ie: bigger than 4.7").  Right now, you can a decent mid-range 5"-screen Android phone for around the same price as a price-reduced iPhone 5s.  Given that buyers in India are very value conscious and prefer bigger screens, what's the market potential for an upgraded 4" iPhone? Sounds like, given those market dynamics, Apple would have to sell the iPhone 6 at around $399US to gain decent traction there.
    Still with a 5 times lower cost of living the phone should cost $150.
  • Reply 18 of 32
    knowitallknowitall Posts: 1,648member

    talexy said

    I'm expecting you to buy another phone if you don't like Apples prices 
    I might do that, but give Apple some time, they might turn around.
    Consider that the original iPhone was also priced way too high.
  • Reply 19 of 32
    jfc1138jfc1138 Posts: 3,090member
    Not sure I like the move. Why dilute the brand value in a third world country? 
    In a third world country even half price Apple products are likely out of the reach, and thus aspirational still, for the vast majority of the population. And the three years old models are always discounted: heck the 5s is no doubt FREE under the right circumstances....
  • Reply 20 of 32
    cornchipcornchip Posts: 1,945member
    Not sure I like the move. Why dilute the brand value in a third world country? 
    They slashed the price of another product not too long ago… trying to remember what it was… seems like they came out with a huge revamp of whatever it was a few months after that…
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