The Apple iPhone 5 is not expected to hit Indian stores anytime before October end or perhaps early November, a good 30-45 days behind the official launch that happens today (September 21). Officially, Apple India representatives have not confirmed any launch date. Should that prevent enthusiasts from bringing home the new iPhone 5? Absolutely not.
The nearest Apple markets where one can get an official iPhone 5 is Hong Kong or Singapore. In fact, the iPhone 5 price is a good Rs 40,000 less than what some sellers on Indian e-commerce site Ebay.in are offering. For instance, at the Apple authorised stores in HK, iPhone 5 starts at about Rs 39,000 while iPhone 4S is starts at Rs 32,000. Or if you opt for an iPhone 5 from Singapore, it will cost Rs 42,000 (and upwards) while the iPhone 4S starts at nearly Rs 45,000 (and upwards). The iPhone will be available today in the US, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore and the UK.
But before you rush out to buy iPhone 5 or the more affordable iPhone models from international markets, remember every iPhone comes with one year of hardware repair coverage through its limited warranty and up to 90 days of complimentary support, both valid only in the country of purchase. In practice, you can take a faulty iPhone to any Apple Store or authorised reseller worldwide for troubleshooting and tech support, but that may cost extra money.
Consumer forums and tech blogs in India are agog with posts questioning Apple’s intent to bring its latest devices in emerging markets like India. It’s not hard to see the reason. We ended 22011 with an installed base of about 24 million smartphones and are expected to grow the smartphone sales around 77% in 2012. As per estimates from Convergence Catalyst, of the total smartphone market in India just about 1.3 million devices are those that can be categorised as the premium end smartphones (priced above $400 from Apple iPhone, Samsung Galaxy S series etc). Analysts at Convergence Catalyst believe that Apple iPhone models (3GS to 5) can clock sales of about 240,000 in India provided the company can launch the new iPhone 5 by Diwali (November) and cash on the festive season sales.
But compare this number with Apple’s core market, the US where 46.9% of mobile users have a smartphone which is nearly 110 million (comScore data), and they pale out. Apple, with an estimated 29% smartphone market share in the US, competes closely with Samsung.
What’s also making it easier for Apple to sell its devices in the US is the high carrier subsidies that make a $600 smartphone cost about $200 for the consumer. Internationally, users typically buy the phone at full cost. That’s where manufacturers such as Samsung manage to snap their share of customers by creating lower-end Android devices that are marketed off at reasonable costs. Further, multi-layered retail distribution system in India, unreliable 3G coverage, lack of credit cards to buy apps and music from Apple’s app store, and close to zero operator subsidies make it harder for Apple to apply its “proven sales theory” in India.
Until Apple finds a suitable sales strategy for emerging markets, they will continue to lose out to the Samsungs and HTCs that create quality devices at reasonable prices and have mastered the retail distribution too. Just as a successful debut is critical to Apple since it releases just one new smartphone model a year, CEO Tim Cooks also needs to figure out a way to penetrate India that brings a completely new market. Today, Apple is enjoying unrivaled success in the US and the EU but it won’t last if they cannot find a way to tap into emerging markets.
*Prices are indicative of currency conversion rates as of Sep 20
Consumer forums and tech blogs in India are agog with posts questioning Apple’s intent to bring its latest devices in emerging markets like India. It’s not hard to see the reason. We ended 22011 with an installed base of about 24 million smartphones and are expected to grow the smartphone sales around 77% in 2012. As per estimates from Convergence Catalyst, of the total smartphone market in India just about 1.3 million devices are those that can be categorised as the premium end smartphones (priced above $400 from Apple iPhone, Samsung Galaxy S series etc). Analysts at Convergence Catalyst believe that Apple iPhone models (3GS to 5) can clock sales of about 240,000 in India provided the company can launch the new iPhone 5 by Diwali (November) and cash on the festive season sales.
But compare this number with Apple’s core market, the US where 46.9% of mobile users have a smartphone which is nearly 110 million (comScore data), and they pale out. Apple, with an estimated 29% smartphone market share in the US, competes closely with Samsung.
What’s also making it easier for Apple to sell its devices in the US is the high carrier subsidies that make a $600 smartphone cost about $200 for the consumer. Internationally, users typically buy the phone at full cost. That’s where manufacturers such as Samsung manage to snap their share of customers by creating lower-end Android devices that are marketed off at reasonable costs. Further, multi-layered retail distribution system in India, unreliable 3G coverage, lack of credit cards to buy apps and music from Apple’s app store, and close to zero operator subsidies make it harder for Apple to apply its “proven sales theory” in India.
Until Apple finds a suitable sales strategy for emerging markets, they will continue to lose out to the Samsungs and HTCs that create quality devices at reasonable prices and have mastered the retail distribution too. Just as a successful debut is critical to Apple since it releases just one new smartphone model a year, CEO Tim Cooks also needs to figure out a way to penetrate India that brings a completely new market. Today, Apple is enjoying unrivaled success in the US and the EU but it won’t last if they cannot find a way to tap into emerging markets.
*Prices are indicative of currency conversion rates as of Sep 20
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