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[darkside31337]

I've been thinking about getting an iPad 2 at $299 for a while now but I guess I'll just wait for the price to drop on the 4. Want to get an iPad but have no interest in a Mini and no interest in paying $399, guess I'll just wait till somebody does a sale for the 4.

 

[Brinbe]

I saw the price and I laughed and I laughed. Such a pathetically awful ripoff

 

[EmiPrime]

Interesting move.

The point of the 5C model was to introduce an iPhone that could compete (price-wise) with Android devices in emerging markets. A lot of countries don't offer subsidized phones, so the high price tag (typically $600-900 dollars) for an iPhone is driving people towards Android devices.

If that was their goal with the 5C then they are completely clueless given there are smartphones available at a quarter of the price. The 5C 8GB is more expensive than the HTC One, LG G2, Nexus 5 and Xperia Z1 Compact, it is firmly in the "flagship" pricing category. Apple just aren't competitive on price in the off contract market.

 

[CrudeDiatribe]

Interesting move.

The point of the 5C model was to introduce an iPhone that could compete (price-wise) with Android devices in emerging markets. A lot of countries don't offer subsidized phones, so the high price tag (typically $600-900 dollars) for an iPhone is driving people towards Android devices.

It clearly wasn't the point. Analysts who have a much wider audience than actual insight felt that the 'C' of the leaked '5C' moniker was for 'cheap' instead of 'colour'.

It's an iPhone 5 with a cheaper bill of materials for Apple, so that they could drop the price $100 when they dropped the iPhone 5 into the middle of the range and keep their margins up. The iPhone 5C fills the role the iPhone 4S did, following the iPhone 5's release.

This year we're going to get an iPhone 6, the iPhone 5S will probably become the iPhone 5CS and the iPhone 5C will replace the 4S, with the price points remaining consistent with every year they've had three models for sale ($0/$100/$200 in contract markets, and falling wherever they fall in non-contract markets).

Edit: Just to drive home my point:
@ $200/$100/0$ with contract:
2009: 3GS/3G/-
2010: 4/3GS/-
2011: 4S/4/3GS
2012: 5/4S/4
2013: 5S/5C/4S

 

[heyf00L]

How does dropping 8GB of flash memory, which must cost them about $5 or less, save them any significant amount of money?

Price tiering based on memory is the dumbest thing. We all know you could just put a memory card slot on it!

 

[Blablurn]

How does dropping 8GB of flash memory, which must cost them about $5 or less, save them any significant amount of money?

Price tiering based on memory is the dumbest thing. We all know you could just put a memory card slot on it!

if you produce 1 million devices it already saves you 5 million bucks.

 

[AlexMeloche]

Explains why the iPad 2 was in sale for 325$ everywhere.

Good thing tho, never understood why people were still buying an iPad2 when you could get the Air for 100$ more.

 

[badcrumble]

The iPad 4 is sort of a downgrade in a way, in the sense that it's even more thick and heavy compared to the iPad Air. The iPad Air was the first in-all-ways upgrade over the iPad 2, IMO, in the sense that the 3rd and 4th gen were not nearly as good to hold.

I'm curious to see what happens at their September/October iDevice event(s). I think this is the year the Dock Connector and the iPod Classic die. Possibly the year that non-Retina iOS devices die too. Oh, and Apple's pretty much certainly going to kill the internal optical drive (which is only still being sold in the dead-end non-Retina MacBook Pro). Big year of completing a generational transition for them.

And we're reasonably likely to see the Apple TV get a lot more interesting soon, too. I don't really give a shit about wearables though.

 

[tabs2002]

£429 is still too expensive

 

[Hcoregamer00]

I am typing this thing on an iPad 2 as we speak, I love this little machine. I will keep on using it until the battery turns to shit, then I will buy the 64 gig model of the newest iPad. This iPad 2 will get a second life as my picture frame sometime in the future.

It makes sense in a way, because iPad 2 parts were probably getting expensive since they are so old. Also, the iPad 2's sole purpose was to be the gimped machine to persuade people to buy the newest one since it is "$100 more." The gimping was the old processor and the non-Retina display. For the iPad 4 compared to the iPad Air (5) is the old processor and the heavy weight. Expect the 4 to be there for the next 2-3 years, the same way the iPad 2 was.

So don't expect the iPad 4 to be replaced for a long while, iOS 8 will likely be the last update for the iPad 2. You had a good run buddy!!

 

[mrkgoo]

It clearly wasn't the point. Analysts who have a much wider audience than actual insight felt that the 'C' of the leaked '5C' moniker was for 'cheap' instead of 'colour'.

It's an iPhone 5 with a cheaper bill of materials for Apple, so that they could drop the price $100 when they dropped the iPhone 5 into the middle of the range and keep their margins up. The iPhone 5C fills the role the iPhone 4S did, following the iPhone 5's release.

This year we're going to get an iPhone 6, the iPhone 5S will probably become the iPhone 5CS and the iPhone 5C will replace the 4S, with the price points remaining consistent with every year they've had three models for sale ($0/$100/$200 in contract markets, and falling wherever they fall in non-contract markets).

Edit: Just to drive home my point:
@ $200/$100/0$ with contract:
2009: 3GS/3G/-
2010: 4/3GS/-
2011: 4S/4/3GS
2012: 5/4S/4
2013: 5S/5C/4S

I don't see why people don't get it. The iPhone 5C is just the iPhone 5 drop down one tier after a year just like every year. The only difference is a new shell, which makes it seem fresher, and newer and helps differentiate the 5S as well as perhaps save some money on manufacturing.


The 8GB is an odd Decision though. You'd think the cost is negligible, and creating anew tier product to be largely superfluous when they probably could've simply given the price reduction without dropping the storage capacity of the 16GB.

Maybe they want to give a price drop without alienating the recent buyers? A weird move. Then again, they've always had an 8GB model at the bottom tier. Maybe they're just doing it sooner as a test.

I dunno.

 

[Vyer]

iPad 2 lasted longer than expected and has been quite the trooper. Good night sweet prince

 

[Guess Who]

I am sure if laypeople understood just how much better the 5S is to the 5C the latter would be massive flop but given how crazy the margins must be on a 5C I doubt Apple care.

In terms of raw hardware power, sure, the 5s is substantially ahead of the 5c. But in terms of the actual user experience, the 5c is still very snappy and responsive. The A6 is not yet showing its age, and still runs pretty much anything you throw at it very well. Certainly I don't think a lot of iPhone 5 owners feel terribly pressured to upgrade to the 5s. You could definitely argue that the 5c is overpriced compared to other phones (but comparing it to the Moto G is laughable, the G is much worse hardware all around from horsepower to build quality - the 5c competes with the Galaxy S III/HTC One/Nexus 4), but honestly unless you hate the plastic design, most people would be largely as happy with a 5c as a 5s.