The much-awaited Apple iPhone 5 will hit
Indian retail shelves on November 2,
according to sources close to Apple. So far,
pricing has not yet been revealed. In the
meanwhile, Apple has introduced local
Rupee currency pricing for the iTunes App
Store.
Redington India and Ingram Micro have
been appointed as the master distributors
of the iPhone 5, and will be responsible for
providing the device to the two Apple
carriers (Aircel and Airtel). Other resellers
will also be able to procure the iPhone 5
from the two distributors, and sell it with
their own markup.
Hence, users can expect pricing to differ
across resellers and carriers – however,
Apple may end up controlling the pricing.
Expected pricing of the iPhone 5 ranges
from Rs. 45,000 for the 16GB model, to Rs.
65,000 for the 64GB model. Apple could
however, price the 16GB model lower, if it
decides on a more aggressive model. U.S
pricing for the unlocked 16GB iPhone 5 is
$649, translating to roughly Rs. 35,000,
excluding duties.
With the new FDI rules, Apple's plans of
opening its own retail store in India have
been thwarted , with the company required
to source 30 percent of its product sales
from local companies.
Apple’s introduction of Rupee pricing in its
App Store is a boon for both users and
developers, with more transparency for
both parties when buying and pricing apps.
Google has had local currency support on
the Google Play store for a while now, but
only recently introduced seller support in
the country – after a long wait.
According to a TOI report, most of the
Indian telecom operators are ready with
the Nano SIM cards required by the iPhone
5, so users can expect to start using the
device from launch date itself.
Already, almost all Indian carriers are ready
with nano SIM cards to support iPhone 5.
The demand for the iPhone 5 in India has
already been vast, with the device selling
well at a massive premium via online
retailers who are importing the device, and
the grey market. The top-end versions of
the device have been famously selling in
India for more than Rs. 1 lakh, a staggering
investment for a mobile phone.
Currently, the iPhone 5 is available for pre-
order on online retail sites such as
Infibeam, who are charging a Rs. 5,000
booking amount – and promise to reveal
the price only after launch.
Source: TOI
