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Apple CEO Tim Cook admitted that iPhones are too expensive in India, during an interview with Indian news channel NDTV on Monday, the last day of his weeklong visit to the country (via TechCrunch).

According to a recent report from Deutsche Bank, India is among the most expensive places in the world to buy an iPhone. Prices there average 31 percent higher than the U.S., with only iPhones in Sweden, Indonesia, and Brazil proving more costly.

timcook_ndtv.jpg

NDTV's Vikram Chandra broached the subject with Cook on air. "You've got an iPhone here which is more expensive than it is in the U.S., with less functionality than it would have in the U.S., and in a country where purchasing power is a fraction of what it is in the U.S.," Chandra said.

Cook acknowledged the disproportionate cost by suggesting that the iPhone was overpriced rather than too expensive. "The duties and the taxes and the compounding of those takes the price and it makes it very high. Our profitability is less in India, it's materially less -- but still I recognize that prices are high," he said.

"We want to do things that lower that over time, to the degree that we can," Cook continued. "I want the consumer in India to be able to buy at a price that looks like the U.S. price."


Chandra's interview covered a few more topics, including how Apple saw itself investing in its Indian presence. "What we see here is talent," said Cook. "That means getting the development community moving on iOS. We're also using a lot of skills in India for maps - the maps facility will be several hundred million dollars worth of work."

Cook also said the company wants to bring all its existing services to India, including Apple Pay, and that if the need arose to offer something unique in the country, Apple would look at that too, although he acknowledged the possible cultural limitations: "I don't believe personally in trying to be something you're not. We are what we are. We're a California company."

The interview rounded off Tim Cook's weeklong trip to India, during which he met with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, mingled with Bollywood stars, watched a cricket game, visited temples, and attended business meetings in Mumbai.

Article Link: iPhones Too Expensive in India, Says Apple CEO Tim Cook
 
They're actually too expensive worldwide.

Edit:
A quick sample of pricing:
iPhone 6s Silver 16GB
USA - $649.00 = $649.00 USD
Brazil - R$ 3.999 = $1121.11 USD - that's $472.11 USD extra the customer pays in BR
Great Britain - £449 (£539.00 - VAT £90.00) = $655.36 USD or $786.86 USD including VAT which is what the customer pays - that's $137.86 USD extra the customer pays in GB
Australia - $980 ($1,079.00 - GST $99) = $701.88 USD or $772.78 USD including GST which is what the customer pays - that's $123.78 USD extra the customer pays in AU
Japan - ¥78,800 = $719.19 USD - that's $70.19 USD extra the customer pays in JP
 
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iPhone is, yes, already expensive worldwide.
I agree.
They should not sell next generation iPhone 1600 AUD for top tier variation.
They should sell them below 1300 AUD.
iMac pricing is AUD $1,699! iPhone or iMac? I think I could not do without iMac if I had to choose.
11-inch MacBook Air from A$1,399. 13-inch MacBook Pro from A$1,699 RRP.

Yes, iPhone is severely overpriced in the Aussie land.
 
That's unfortunate for those who want to be a part of the iPhone ecosystem and cannot afford one or unwilling to spend this type of money due to the dollar amount. Even Apple's 16GB is over priced. There needs to be an even playing field for everybody.
 
They're actually too expensive worldwide.

In comparison to what? The Galaxy S7 Edge? $822? iPhone 6s $649, 6s Plus $749. You think any decent smart phone is cheap anywhere in the world?

Samsung Galaxy s7 in India ₹ 48,500. iPhone 6S in india ₹ 44,500. Who's expensive again?
 
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In comparison to what? The Galaxy S7 Edge? $822? iPhone 6s $649, 6s Plus $749. You think any decent smart phone is cheap anywhere in the world?
In comparison to computer devices in general. Computers are a basic human right. There is no reason why iPhone, with its insanely cheap manufactured cost price, is incredibly expensive and overpriced making it unattainable for many individuals.
 
In comparison to computer devices in general. Computers are a basic human right. There is no reason why iPhone, with its insanely cheap manufactured cost price, is incredibly expensive and overpriced making it unattainable for many individuals.


A "basic human right"? Maybe for those like you, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. Try telling those people in India where 1 billion people have no access to fresh water or sanitary living conditions or a roof thats not made out of cardboard. If I didn't think you were bereft of grey matter I'd actually laugh at your ludicrous and offensive comment.
 
A "basic human right"? Maybe for those like you, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. Try telling those people in India where 1 billion people have no access to fresh water or sanitary living conditions or a roof thats not made out of cardboard. If I didn't think you were bereft of grey matter I'd actually laugh at your ludicrous and offensive comment.
You comment is pointless and deliberately misleading, of course fresh water and sanitary living conditions are basic human rights. But computer devices are huge educational resources. That was the point I was making. Computers are a human right.
 
In comparison to what? The Galaxy S7 Edge? $822? iPhone 6s $649, 6s Plus $749. You think any decent smart phone is cheap anywhere in the world?

Samsung Galaxy s7 in India ₹ 48,500. iPhone 6S in india ₹ 44,500. Who's expensive again?

Well, the galaxy s7 you're talking about has 32 GB of internal storage and has an SD card slot for future expansion plus most of Google's services work in India so you can't really compare the price.
 
You didn't present any facts. I simply made a point that all individuals needs access to affordable computers and iPhone was not an affordable computer.

iPhones are actually too expensive worldwide. There is no reason why iPhone, with its insanely cheap manufactured cost price, is incredibly expensive and overpriced making it unattainable for many individuals.
 
iMac pricing is AUD $1,699! iPhone or iMac? I think I could not do without iMac if I had to choose.
11-inch MacBook Air from A$1,399. 13-inch MacBook Pro from A$1,699 RRP.

Yes, iPhone is severely overpriced in the Aussie land.

Let's blame Apple for the devaluation of the Australian dollar and the Australian taxes!
 
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Let's blame Apple for the devaluation of the Australian dollar and the Australian taxes!
Not true! Even when adjusting for taxes and currency, countries outside the USA are being charged much more for iPhone. It seems Apple is unnecessarily inflating pricing in other countries.

Ok. Let’s actually look at this objectively please with a few countries:

iPhone 6s Silver 16GB

USA - $649.00 = $649.00 USD

Great Britain - £449 (£539.00 - VAT £90.00) = $655.36 USD or $786.86 USD including VAT which is what the customer pays

Australia - $980 ($1,079.00 - GST $99) = $701.88 USD or $772.78 USD including GST which is what the customer pays

Japan - ¥78,800 = $719.19 USD
 
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have a look at the third world, look in the eyes of a child starving for food, begging in the street and tell them that a smartphone is their basic human right.
Most on these forums are lucky enough to never encounter such a thing. It really is heartbreaking to see, certainly would do some people good to see just where the rest of the world stands.
 
Not true! Even when adjusting for taxes and currency, countries outside the USA are being charged much more for iPhone. It seems Apple is unnecessarily inflating pricing in other countries.

Ok. Let’s actually look at this objectively please with a few countries:

iPhone 6s Silver 16GB

USA - $649.00 = $649.00 USD

Great Britain - £449 (£539.00 - VAT £90.00) = $655.36 USD or $786.86 USD including VAT which is what the customer pays

Australia - $980 ($1,079.00 - $99) = $701.88 USD or $772.78 USD including GST which is what the customer pays

Japan - ¥78,800 = $719.19 USD

As you demonstrated, without sales tax, it's about $50 more, at most, than the US.

Apple is not guilty because in the US, they don't put sales tax with price and the rest of the world does. Law abiding Americans pay more than $649.

Also, you have not factored in import taxes.

And the fact that the UK, Australia, etc. many countries have 2 years warranty and the US only has 1.
 
As you demonstrated, without sales tax, it's about $50 more, at most, than the US.

Apple is not guilty because in the US, they don't put sales tax with price and the rest of the world does. Law abiding Americans pay more than $649.

Also, you have not factored in import taxes.

And the fact that the UK, Australia, etc. many countries have 2 years warranty and the US only has 1.
No, it's not about $50 more, it's much more. Be accurate, be exact please.

How Apple treats all taxes is really irrelevant, the the final price that the customer pays is what's important here. The price customers pay when they leave the Apple shop.

Just in those sample countries, the customer at the checkout pays:

Great Britain - $137.86 USD extra
Australia - $123.78 USD extra
Japan - $70.19 USD extra


iPhone 6s Silver 16GB
USA - $649.00 = $649.00 USD
Great Britain - £449 (£539.00 - VAT £90.00) = $655.36 USD or $786.86 USD including VAT which is what the customer pays
Australia - $980 ($1,079.00 - $99) = $701.88 USD or $772.78 USD including GST which is what the customer pays
Japan - ¥78,800 = $719.19 USD

Further, according to Apple's site, iPhone's in the above sample countries come with an Apple One (1) Year Limited Warranty. Any other additional guarantees a country might offer as protection from defective devices is up to that country, it has nothing to do with the price customers pay when they leave the Apple shop.
 
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