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.