The iPhone 4s was released by Apple in October, 2011, and while the handset is outdated in every possible way, it is still being sold in India and other markets of the world by Apple.
Despite better budget smartphones being available from Chinese OEMs in India, the iPhone 4s has continued to sell in brisk numbers for Apple in the country. However, to better take on low-end budget Chinese phones, Apple distributors in India reduced the price of the 8GB iPhone 4s to Rs. 13,000 (~US$210) last month, from its original price of Rs. 18,000.
The price cut has led to the sales of the handset being doubled in the last two weeks alone. The increased sales has also boosted the handset’s ranking into the top ten most popular smartphones in the budget segment on Amazon India.A Chief of a top ranking handset maker from India accepted to the Economic Times that the increased sales of iPhone 4s have definitely eaten into their sales, but he remains positive about this being a short-term phenomenon.
“Apple’s core will always remain the super premium segment where we are not present. This price drop on iPhone 4s is to liquidate stock which is hopefully a temporary phase,” the person said, requesting anonymity.
In a bid to increase its market share in the country, Apple has also allowed retailers to sell the iPhone at their own desired price level. This way retailers can set their own margin that they earn on the sale of every iPhone unit, which was previously closely controlled by Apple.
Xiaomi, Micromax, Lenovo and Motorola all sell budget smartphones that offer better specifications and features than the iPhone 4s in the same or even lower price range. While it is great for Apple that the iPhone 4s still remains a popular budget phone, the experience the handset is capable of offering is significantly inferior to its competition. On the bright side, Apple will be updating the iPhone 4s to iOS 9 later this year, so the phone will at least be running on the latest version of iOS for another year, though the performance of the handset might take a huge hit after the update.
[Via Economic Times]
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