Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

MacRumors

macrumors bot
Original poster
Apr 12, 2001
69,082
40,118



Apple continues to strengthen its foothold in the Indian smartphone market by now reducing the price of the two-month-old iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus in the country. According to a report by The Times of India, sales for the new iPhones have dived following an upsurge during Diwali festivities in November.

iPhone-6s-main-800x337.jpg

As a result, Apple has cut the price of the 6s and 6s Plus by up to 16 percent from the original price point. The iPhone 6s 16GB model began at 62,000 Rupees in October, and now sells for between 52,000 and 55,000 Rupees, with prices varying between retail locations. All storage sizes of both the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus received price cuts, with the average difference in price between the October launch date and now being about 15 percent lower.
Below is the approximate prices of iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus on one of the country's biggest e-commerce website:

- iPhone 6S (16GB): Rs 48,499
- iPhone 6S (64GB): Rs 62,849
- iPhone 6S (128GB): Rs 74,940
- iPhone 6S Plus (16GB): Rs 61,999
- iPhone 6S Plus (64GB): Rs 75,499
- iPhone 6S Plus (128GB): Rs 85,999
One advantage to lowering the iPhones' price point, according to a few anonymous retail executives, is making the new generation of iPhone more enticing of an upgrade for users still on the 6 and 6 Plus from 2014. On average, the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus were Rs 8,000 to Rs 9,500 more expensive than the models released the year before, and even about Rs 14,000 to Rs 16,000 more expensive than the same versions launched in the United States, Middle East, and Hong Kong.
The reduction also narrows the gap with prices of iPhone 6 devices launched in 2014, making an upgrade more attractive for customers. "The price difference between the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6s was a lot, so many customers are not willing to upgrade to the new model," said a senior executive of another national retailer.
The new price cut follows a similar one for the iPhone 5s in India last week, which saw the 2013 iPhone reduced by nearly half of what it was selling for in September: 44,500 Rupees to 24,999 Rupees.

Tarun Pathak, senior analyst at Counterpoint Technology Market Research, noted that the price reduction of the 5s could easily "take the wind out of iPhone 6s sales" in the immediate future given the large gap in price between the two. But in the January to September timeframe, he sees the price cuts "re-igniting" demand for the 6s and 6s Plus in India.

Article Link: Apple Reduces Price of iPhone 6s and 6s Plus in India
 
Still more expansive than in the UK. And UK is not cheap. 5S looks like value for money , and still an excellent phone
 
  • Like
Reactions: pauliaK
So they made a few to many / they want to increase there foothold / iPhone 7 production is gonna see a bottle neck. See I just became a big time stock market analyst lol. One or none of these are true but boy will I privately tell my family to short apple once I post this on my blog lol /s
 
Indian market is very different to most others since you have a drastic disparity in wealth and even the relatively wealthy are not too keen on spending on luxury products. These facts work to dampen the sales forecasts based on the population size and economic growth factors.
 
The strategy was clear. Dump old inventory (5S and 5c) into developing markets and price it exorbitantly high for latest variant so that only filthy rich could afford.

But Indians are smarter than what Apple thinks. In a price conscious market this is like a fitting slap on Apple's face. They priced themselves out of the Indian market.

I wouldn't be surprised if some senior manager of Indian sales gets fired or disciplined for this misadventure of pricing.

When will Apple learn?
 
Still more expansive than in the UK. And UK is not cheap. 5S looks like value for money , and still an excellent phone

Of course it's more "expansive", India puts so much taxes on imported electronics, the Indians can only buy local manufactured devices and dirty cheap Chinese devices.

The problem is deciding if they will go for manufacturing there and sell more, at a lower revenue, or Indian wealthy will buy it anyway.
 
Still more expansive than in the UK. And UK is not cheap. 5S looks like value for money , and still an excellent phone

Are Indian prices like American - where the customer adds on the appropriate tax at the point of sale? If not the base model 6S is definitely cheaper in India:

- iPhone 6S (16GB): Rs 48,499 = ~£484 vs UK's price of £539
 
  • Like
Reactions: Oblivious.Robot
there is article in theverge saying there is no more flagship phones ...

for $450 you can get decent phones from variety of different manufacturer.

we will see how the iPhone 6S sales figure for this quarter if that anything to do with $650 starting price point.
 
Last edited:
Are Indian prices like American - where the customer adds on the appropriate tax at the point of sale? If not the base model 6S is definitely cheaper in India:

- iPhone 6S (16GB): Rs 48,499 = ~£484 vs UK's price of £539
it is $750 USD. remember it is always expensive in UK!
 
Still more expansive than in the UK. And UK is not cheap. 5S looks like value for money , and still an excellent phone

I have to wonder whether price really matters in developing countries. People in China, India...etc make on average ~$500-$2000 a year so those who pay more than $1000 for a phone are clearly living lives of luxury, and have far more money than necessary to live in the developing world.

Do you really care about price when your main source of income is injections of corrupt money from accepting bribes in a government role? I dunno... I usually find they're pretty stupid with money (which is in stark contrast to the Chinese/Indian migrants we had in my country back in the day when they came over super poor, and hard working).
 
  • Like
Reactions: Benjamin Frost
The strategy was clear. Dump old inventory (5S and 5c) into developing markets and price it exorbitantly high for latest variant so that only filthy rich could afford.

But Indians are smarter than what Apple thinks. In a price conscious market this is like a fitting slap on Apple's face. They priced themselves out of the Indian market.

I wouldn't be surprised if some senior manager of Indian sales gets fired or disciplined for this misadventure of pricing.

When will Apple learn?
 
there is article in theverge saying there is no more flagship phones ...

for $450 you can get decent phones from variety of different manufacturer.

we will see how the iPhone 6S sales figure for this quarter if that anything to do with $650 starting price point.

$450? Even sub $100 devices will suit many people's needs especially if you're a prepaid customer. Today you can buy a Nexus 6 directly from Amazon for $250. I bought mine for $200 during their black Friday special but I still use my iPhone 6s as my primary device due to the smaller size.
 
$450? Even sub $100 devices will suit many people's needs especially if you're a prepaid customer. Today you can buy a Nexus 6 directly from Amazon for $250. I bought mine for $200 during their black Friday special but I still use my iPhone 6s as my primary device due to the smaller size.

Yup. Moto G, Nexus 5, Nexus 6, Nexus 5P - all kind of good phones at specific price points.

$450- I am just saying top of the line Nexus phones.
 
I work with lots of Indians, many of whom are in the US on long term projects. None of them have iPhones. They bring over their Samsung or Nexus. In India it seems all you need is Whatsapp and Android. iPhone isn't on their radar, probably due to the high cost.
 
  • Like
Reactions: thermodynamic
Apple won't be seeing another penny out of me for long while. Only when a future version of OS X and iOS no longer supports my device I will think about upgrading (if its necessary). These things are expensive but I enjoy them.
 
Still keeping my 6 plus 128gig.
Topic aside, the best part about Apple Music in India is it costs only Rs.120(2$).

Thats because, you don't have the entire apple music collection in India. It is a subset of what is available in US and other countries due to content owner's licensing restrictions per country.
 
I work with lots of Indians, many of whom are in the US on long term projects. None of them have iPhones. They bring over their Samsung or Nexus. In India it seems all you need is Whatsapp and Android. iPhone isn't on their radar, probably due to the high cost.

Yeah none of my Indian colleagues like Apple... actually, most hate Apple.
 
If Americans had to pay up front full price for their iPhones, then sales in the US would be in the dump too. Subsidized financing from the carrier over 24 months makes iPhone sales popular in the US.

In the US we can get 0% financing or low interest on a wide range of consumer electronics. It gives the impression of a higher standard of living. The rest of the world can not.
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.