Can Apple afford to stay high-end only?

Tre Lawrence

Well-known member
Apr 26, 2013
178
0
0
Visit site
Yes, I know its recent offerings were supposed to cover different segments, but can Apple really afford to NOT court the same markets that the Moto G and Nexus 5 are aimed at?

On the one hand, Apple wins by not diluting its products with overly cheap offerings. Customers perceive iOS products to be premium, and high satisfaction scores indicate they remain happy. On the other hand, IDC numbers seem to indicate Android (in particular) and even WP8 are getting headwinds. Can Apple sustain growth without a "real" budget offering?

Discuss. :)
 

jsntrenkler

Trusted Member
Mar 9, 2010
2,779
55
0
Visit site
Great Question ... I think that as long as they keep innovating and become a little more receptive to change that they will be just fine with their premium pricing structure. iOS7 has seen many Android users switching over to the iOS platform. Quality is important, especially when it comes to apple products IMO.
 

Eileen89

Well-known member
Apr 27, 2011
5,856
178
0
Visit site
The on contract price of the iPhone 5S starts at $199 which is actually cheaper than the off contract $350. starting price of the Nexus 5. I'd say $199. is a competitive price for a high end smart phone as compared to other smartphones in today's market.
 

iEd

Banned
Jun 13, 2012
3,402
2
0
Visit site
The 4s is what? Free on contract? That's beyond budget. My friend just got one and is perfectly happy. He loves iPhones but doesn't want or need 16-64gig. He was happy with a 4 but needed voice turn by turn and the 4s fit right into what he needed.




#Naked Tuesday
 

Eileen89

Well-known member
Apr 27, 2011
5,856
178
0
Visit site
The 4s is what? Free on contract? That's beyond budget. My friend just got one and is perfectly happy. He loves iPhones but doesn't want or need 16-64gig. He was happy with a 4 but needed voice turn by turn and the 4s fit right into what he needed.
True that, iEd. Heck even the iPhone 5C with all of it's high end features can be found for $99 (on-contract) and cheaper than that at a few third party sellers like Walmart, ect...
 

Tre Lawrence

Well-known member
Apr 26, 2013
178
0
0
Visit site
The on contract price of the iPhone 5S starts at $199 which is actually cheaper than the off contract $350. starting price of the Nexus 5. I'd say $199. is a competitive price for a high end smart phone as compared to other smartphones in today's market.

Compared to the cheapie competitor devices -- the current ones, to be clear -- off-contract, that might not be considered optimal.

Some people would pick a 4S as a daily driver over a Nexus 5, but I suspect Google and MSFT will make grounds in emerging markets.
 

Tre Lawrence

Well-known member
Apr 26, 2013
178
0
0
Visit site
Lets keep this thread friendly. Keith didn't say you attacked Apple in his reply.

Didn't say he did.

Look, I've been around forums long enough to know y'all will support each other. I respect that and get that. I suspect his response was meant to be less than friendly, but I have been wrong before.

I'll pretend that if I said your comments (or his) are/were trite, y'all would consider it friendly, and hold my tongue.
 

Eileen89

Well-known member
Apr 27, 2011
5,856
178
0
Visit site
Compared to the cheapie competitor devices -- the current ones, to be clear -- off-contract, that might not be considered optimal.

Some people would pick a 4S as a daily driver over a Nexus 5, but I suspect Google and MSFT will make grounds in emerging markets.

Not sure what you are getting at here since most people do purchase phones "On Contract" and not off. I suspect a lot of people who are in the market for "any" smartphone from their wireless carrier will be looking to save some money by taking the subsidized pricing. The Nexus 5 is currently only being sold at full retail for $350. I believe the contract price of the iPhone 5S in the same smartphone category would be the better deal at $199.
 

Tre Lawrence

Well-known member
Apr 26, 2013
178
0
0
Visit site
Great Question ... I think that as long as they keep innovating and become a little more receptive to change that they will be just fine with their premium pricing structure. iOS7 has seen many Android users switching over to the iOS platform. Quality is important, especially when it comes to apple products IMO.

I've said this elsewhere: in the short term, I think you are right. It is what it is, and as long as they are ahead in the ecosystem battle, I think Apple will be ahead. I still wonder if Android and MSFT may nibble at marketshare without a cheaper CURRENT iOS device.

But who wants to see one LOL? I don't know that diversity of CURRENT offerings would actually help.
 

Tre Lawrence

Well-known member
Apr 26, 2013
178
0
0
Visit site
Even most MacBooks aren't over priced. Take a Sony VAIO for example that has a similar build quality and similar specs and the prices are close to or even higher than an Apple laptop. Of course if you are comparing a crappy net book to a MacBook they may look over priced but they are really just different product categories that shouldn't be compared to each other any more than a BMW should be compared to a yugo.
Everyone (i.e., the MSM) frequently talks about how Apple is going to fail if they don't offer a cheap iPhone or other "low end" products, but you never hear those same analysts talking about how BMW and Mercedes are going to fail if they don't start selling cheap cars. No one says Gucci needs to start making $10 purses. Why is Apple always singled out as a company that "must" start creating cheap products just to survive.

I think there is a major flaw in comparing the economies of scale of fashion/cars to smartphones, but i get your point.

I guess the major point is whether or not Apple mindshare is reaching a limit. I can't say that it is; there is clearly room to grow. But Apple already opened the door to this with the 5C, which seems to be subtle acknowledgment of new market pressures.
 
Last edited:

iEd

Banned
Jun 13, 2012
3,402
2
0
Visit site
It's possible that Apple could have 5 offerings next year.
6,6c,5s,5c,4s. The 4s may drop off.
Now say if the lineup were like this. The 5s can be had for a much lower price and it's a great device it will be at a lower price point and still comparable to the best Android model that comes that may be at a higher price point.
Then the following year the same thing where the 5s could be free on contract and is still right there with any top Android phone. So a consumers choice could be the top Android for hundreds or a 5s for free on contract 2 years from now.
It seems as though Apple sets up for the future rather than the present.
I don't think the 5c was done because of market pressure. It just another offering.
In a few years possibly you will get a "high end" iPhone for a budget price.
Apple supports their phones for years as opposed to months. The 5s could see 3 plus years of support because of the 64 bit A7 and in three years this monster phone would be very budget. The next big thing could be a crazy powerful phone like the 5s for free on contract and the contract is long money and if you can make long money as a company you're always in the game.



#Naked Tuesday
 

kataran

Ambassador
Mar 11, 2013
4,675
33
48
Visit site
People worried when the rumor of the 5c came out as being c for cheap but it turned out to be a higher quality device than many so called quality offerings from many smartphone makers

In my opinion I believe Apple can compete in Price and Quality as well as Customer service now and well into the future


Sent from my iPhone 5
 

metllicamilitia

Ambassador
Dec 25, 2011
5,294
4
38
Visit site
Yes, I know its recent offerings were supposed to cover different segments, but can Apple really afford to NOT court the same markets that the Moto G and Nexus 5 are aimed at?

On the one hand, Apple wins by not diluting its products with overly cheap offerings. Customers perceive iOS products to be premium, and high satisfaction scores indicate they remain happy. On the other hand, IDC numbers seem to indicate Android (in particular) and even WP8 are getting headwinds. Can Apple sustain growth without a "real" budget offering?

Discuss. :)

Perception is the key. Can Apple continue to give the perception of quality? I for one think they are quality and high end, just from using them. Can they keep it up, yes, for sure. As long as they continue to incrementally give people the things they want in the OS. Google (and Microsoft), have proven that major overhauls from one gen to the next is a bad thing to do. The most drastic change Apple has done with iOS is iOS7. It has created a rift of users, those that love it and those that hate it. Given time people will come to understand and at least tolerate it and know it is what iOS has become. No one can guarantee much in the way of what Android has and will continue to have. So Apple also has consistency on its side.

Can Apple compete price-wise off contract? No, not unless you finance your phone though a store like Best Buy or are able to get financing through Apple (as I did with my i5). But on contract, Apple's prices are just as competitive as the competition. As others have said, most people subsidize phones, so it becomes a matter of aesthetic and appeal. What is the flashiest device of the time to go with my mood and wardrobe? This is where the Moto X has the advantage, completely customize the look of your phone. Apple understood this is a market that needs addressing and made the 5C, which is even cheaper on contract while still remaining high end though low end tactics.

As far as sustaining growth, I think so. Apple owns the app ecosystem. If you're looking for an app and it's not in the App Store, it's an oddity. Of the over one million apps in the App Store, over 350,000 of them are iPad only. When businesses make an app, they go iOS. Apple is going to start gaining more traction in the enterprise and business side of the market share, especially with Blackberry in dire straights. So with the offerings of two unique handsets, two unique tablets, and an interactive mp3 player that does the same thing, combined with the vastness of the App Store, people will continue to buy Apple products. They become familiar with the OS and it's the same from mobile device to mobile device, no change, seamless cloud integration, it's all there for them when and where they want it.

Android (Samsung), is getting there, Samsung is basically gaining traction by throwing hundreds of features at people with big screens. Windows Phone will get there as people start getting used to Windows 8 and understand that the phone variant is essentially the same thing. I don't know how seamless Window's cloud integration is, but Windows is being smart by following Apple's lead with streamlining the OS's for their devices. And again, long story short, if Apple continues to follow the same model they have with minor adjustments as necessary, yes they can continue to maintain the business model of selling high end devices indefinitely.
 

jsarino

VR Expert
Trusted Member
Jul 11, 2013
177
0
0
Visit site
Not sure what you are getting at here since most people do purchase phones "On Contract" and not off. I suspect a lot of people who are in the market for "any" smartphone from their wireless carrier will be looking to save some money by taking the subsidized pricing. The Nexus 5 is currently only being sold at full retail for $350. I believe the contract price of the iPhone 5S in the same smartphone category would be the better deal at $199.

Contract-priced Nexus 5 (16 GB) at Sprint is at $49.99, which is well under the iPhone 5S' 16 GB $99 price. Granted, there's a couple of web-only discounts that put it down to that price point, but that's the best deal on that phone at the moment. T-Mobile oddly enough is selling their Nexus 5 at about $100 over the Google Play Store price, which is perplexing.
 

BreakingKayfabe

Well-known member
Sep 12, 2008
8,442
53
48
Visit site
I just see Apple as making one type of product. Quality. I don't know if it's considered high-end considering their offerings. Whatever they make nowadays, those products are just that good for what they're for.
 

Laura Knotek

Well-known member
Jun 15, 2012
2,687
7
38
Visit site
True that, iEd. Heck even the iPhone 5C with all of it's high end features can be found for $99 (on-contract) and cheaper than that at a few third party sellers like Walmart, ect...

The thing is Apple is losing ground in emerging markets, since even a 5C is too expensive for most users in those markets. Devices like the Nokia Lumia 520 are selling well in emerging markets, and the new Motorola Moto G will probably be a great seller in emerging markets.
 

Trending Posts

Members online

Forum statistics

Threads
260,010
Messages
1,765,301
Members
441,220
Latest member
waeriyadh