Apple has apparently confirmed to the press that the newly launched 8GB variant of the iPhone 5c will only be sold in the UK, France, Germany, Australia and China. As per a tweet published by Fortune.com staffer Philip Elmer-DeWitt, Apple will only sell the new device in those five territories. It is unclear if Apple was referring to countries it will be sold in at launch, or over the course of its life.
Elmer-DeWitt is editor of Fortune.com's Apple 2.0 section, and has been covering the company for various publications since 1982.
The statement is surprising, since lower priced products are typically targeted at emerging markets. The
iPhone 5c was widely considered to be a vehicle for Apple to make inroads into markets where the
iPhone 5s would be too expensive and the
iPhone 5 would feel dated. There appears to be no correlation between the five named countries or the operators offering the new 8GB iPhone 5c on subsidised plans.
Apple PR confirms: 8GB iPhone 5C available only in U.K., France, Germany, Australia and China...
-- Philip Elmer-DeWitt (@philiped)
March 18, 2014Apple continues to offer the
iPhone 4s alongside the 5c and 5s in these countries. In terms of price, the new 8GB iPhone 5c slots in halfway between the 4s and 16GB 5c.
Apple recently
restocked an 8GB version of the four-year-old
iPhone 4 in India, in order to reach a lower price point. Apple seems to be pursuing different product mix strategies across territories rather than a unified global lineup.