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Apple Reportedly Cutting iPhone 5c Production as Chinese Gray Market Prices Drop

It will be interesting to see what the real numbers look like on the 5c.... the good news for Apple is the 5s sales are very strong... it is possible, the 5c was a bad call. I sort of expected it to be more popular with kids and in some foreign markets where phone color is more important.

I guess we'll know for sure in the coming months???
 
It is expected situation

First, we have expected 5C will came with much lower price than 5S, for the china market, actually, the price is going to the right value.

Second, the price drop in the gray market, it means 5C has over-supplied OR not much demand.

Third, 150K per day means, 13.5M per quarter, it 1/3 amounts of total iPhone sales in quarter. it means, drop form 300k to 150k, it is not a worst number. because of Apple still selling iPhone 4/4S, even 5S. I am sure 5S much more selling than 5C.

When consider the demand for 5C in the world, even 150k/day, it is not a small number, they will reduce the number of production under 100k/day from next month. Just my guess, the real demand of 5C is just 80-90k/day only.
and, around 160~180k/day demands for 5S, and around 30~40k/day for 4/4S.
 
croooow said:
If the products sold by those unauthorized retailers are purchased legally then it is grey market.

If those products are stolen (or just not legally available like unregistered guns) then it is a black market.
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If you're going to use a gun analogy, you ought to at least make sure it's accurate. Just FYI.
 
kas23 said:
This has been a rare failure by Apple. I can't see why they didn't see this coming. They need to come off their high horse.
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Failure? I was in an Apple Store for about an hour yesterday* and saw plenty of 5C iPhones being purchased. The big difference between purchasers of the 5C and 5S that I saw: 5C buyers looked under 30 (girls under 30 and guys under 25). Small sampling, but interesting.

*I was getting a screen repaired.
 
mdridwan said:
I don't get why anyone would buy this cheap-looking expensive phone when the 5s is just $100 more. Seriously, if you can afford 5c then you can afford the 5s. 5s is sooo much better.
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I have a 32GB 5S, so I will not be purchasing the 5C. However, I held the 5C and it is very nice. It doesn't feel (or look) like plastic at all. Have you actually touched one in person?
 
Vorst said:
I love your comment. I laughing my balls off.
Also it is so real what you are saying, you can delete all other posts on this thread. It says it all.
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Yes, because discounting downward trends are always in a company's best interests. :rolleyes:
 
People should stop comparing the 5c to iPhones from prehistoric times.

The 5c is perceived as a cheap phone nowadays, and people don't want to pay the same as what a 5 would cost, while in addition the 4 and 4S design is the most premium of all.
 
cptdavep said:
I don't know who in their right mind would by a 5C when it's only $100 cheaper than a 5S. Given the difference in performance/features the 5C is really poor value.
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I bought a 5c because :

1. The 5 and 5s form factor do not do anything for me as I have very VERY big hands (I am 6'8'' tall) and the phone feels just too small in my hands. Believe it or not, the added bulk of the plastic back of the 5c, as small as it may be, is just enough to totally change how to phone feels in my hand and make it comfortable.

2. I do not play any games on my phone and thus do not need a super-fast handset. I previously had an iPhone 4 and it was starting to be a bit sluggish. The iPhone 5c is fast enough for me.

3. Like another poster mentioned, I invested the 100$ price difference into AppleCare+

4. By the time my contract ends I will be ready to upgrade to another phone and I am sure the 5c still be very acceptable performance-wise. For me at least.

It is absolutely reasonable that the 5c may not be the right phone for YOU but that doesn't mean that it's the same for everybody else.
 
I wouldn't be surprised if demand is low, but that doesn't mean the product is a failure.

The 5C was always going to be in the shadow of the 5S; new features like the fingerprint sensor have been getting lots of attention. These are also early days, and most buyers will be early adopters (who I would expect to favour the 5S).

The 5C has to be judged over its entire lifetime. The kind of people who order at midnight or queue up overnight at stores were unlikely to be going for the 5C.

Anyone I've seen who experiences a 5C in person comments on how nice it feels in the hand. It's definitely has a certain amount of charm, and people will buy it.

That said, I think Apple should have launched the 5C at a lower price. They're not worth the money by any stretch.
 
cube said:
People should stop comparing the 5c to iPhones from prehistoric times.

The 5c is perceived as a cheap phone nowadays, and people don't want to pay the same as what a 5 would cost, while in addition the 4 and 4S design is the most premium of all.
Click to expand...

Perceived as cheap by who? Have you polled the world of smartphone buyers and determined this?
 
croooow said:
If the products sold by those unauthorized retailers are purchased legally then it is grey market.

If those products are stolen (or just not legally available like unregistered guns) then it is a black market.
Click to expand...

tbrinkma said:
If you're going to use a gun analogy, you ought to at least make sure it's accurate. Just FYI.
Click to expand...

I noticed that you did not bother to correct me. (That would be the "I" in "FYI" which would be helpful) I am not an expert on black market guns like you must be and only added it because "black market" covers more than just stolen products. I was not trying to turn this into a debate about gun control, just the difference between black and grey markets.

If someone legally buys a gun and then sells it in Chicago, I think that is "black market" because you cannot legally buy a gun in Chicago. But there are many places in the U.S. where that same action (legally buying a gun and then selling it in a place where that is legal) would be "grey market".
 
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cube said:
People should stop comparing the 5c to iPhones from prehistoric times.

The 5c is perceived as a cheap phone nowadays, and people don't want to pay the same as what a 5 would cost, while in addition the 4 and 4S design is the most premium of all.
Click to expand...

Wow, 2008-2010 is prehistoric?

Prehistoric means before history. The iPhone is pretty well documented, so everything from Jan 2007 to now is part of iPhone history.
 
Walmart is marketing this phone for $ 45.00 with 2y contract...by the end of this year it will be free if you sign the Devil contract.
iPhone 5c was a mistake...lets look forward at the new iPhone 6 because I don't like this Android at all :mad:
 
Lennholm said:
That's the problem though, the 5C does not serve the price conscious consumers, at all.
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Of course it does, just as the 4S and the 4 have been doing in the past few years. It is just that Apple refuses to address the off contract market at this point.

The funny thing is in the past 12 months, we have been told Apple is in troubles because the iPhone 4 and the 4S is selling too well at $0 and $100 on contract and now all of sudden Apple is doomed again because they are repeating the strategy.

Next year the 5c will be $0 and if it succeeds, it will have served Apple well targeting more price conscious users with its healthy margin. But that is not the users who are buying phones off contract.

absurdamerica said:
Sure, I thought the 5C was going to be used to drive up market share in unsubsidized markets. I'm not convinced it will, and I'm still convinced Apple should be somewhat more concerned with worldwide market share than it seems to be at this point, but only a little bit.
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At this point in time, that is the market Apple is willing to concede. I think the word "cheap" gave pundits and analysts too many wild imaginations. The 5c is a straight replacement of the 5 and occupies the exact spot previously occupied by the 3GS, 4, and 4S
 
5C should be $450 - $0 w/ contract

5S should be $550 - $99 w/ contract

this is Tim Cook's Lisa computer, totally overpricing the market
 
cptdavep said:
I don't know who in their right mind would by a 5C when it's only $100 cheaper than a 5S. Given the difference in performance/features the 5C is really poor value.
Click to expand...

What's worst was that people with iPhone 5 was switching over to iPhone 5c. That had to be the dumbest move in history.
 
moobatticus said:
Black isn't a colour. That would be the iPhone 5e (emo)
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Since when are Black, Grey and White not colors?
avid5-color-pickerMac.png
 
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