APPLE is working on a low-cost iPhone that could cost Brits as little as £499, experts have told The Sun.
The bargain blower is tipped to launch in 2020 alongside three other handsets – but Apple is keeping quiet about the top secret plans for now.
The price of your iPhone has steadily been rising, with top models now costing close to £1,500.
But growth in iPhone sales has been slowing, which experts believe will lead to the creation of a cheaper iPhone model.
It’s expected that Apple will produce a successor to 2016’s popular iPhone SE, which started at just £359/$399 – as well as three more traditional “flagship” handsets.
“Our team just finished an Asia tour, and we strongly believe Apple has a roadmap that will include four smartphones out in 2020 – with the lower-end being the next version of the [iPhone] SE,” said Dan Ives, an expert analyst at Wedbush Securities, speaking to The Sun.
“While the specs on the lower-end one are still blurry, we believe this is Apple going aggressive after 5G and can’t risk missing out on consumers on this segment of the market,” he added.
When probed on pricing, Dan told us that the phone is likely to cost “$100 more than the current [iPhone] SE”.
That would put the iPhone SE at $499, and probably £499 based on Apple’s current currency exchange systems.
That’s a big saving on recent iPhone models, which utterly eclipse that price tag.
The flagship iPhone XS starts at £999, rising to £1,449 for the top iPhone XS Max model.
Even the cheaper iPhone XR starts at a very high £749.
You can pick up an iPhone 7 today for £449, but that handset is now three years old and cost £599 at launch.
So a cheaper iPhone model could be the perfect way to attract new buyers next year.
We spoke to analyst Ben Wood, of CCS Insight, who thinks 2020 will be a major year for new iPhone models.
“If, as expected, the first 5G iPhone does not come until September 2020, we are likely to see the biggest ‘super-cycle’ of iPhone upgrades in history,” gadget boffin Ben told The Sun.
“However, this does present challenges to Apple in the interim period, as many existing iPhone owners are likely to hold on to their current model and wait for the 5G update.
“This is very much in line with CCS Insight’s research, which indicates over 90% of UK mobile phone owners will hold on to their current phone for as long or longer than the previous smartphone they owned.”
This move to 5G could send prices skyrocketing even higher – but Ben doesn’t think so.
“Unless a phone maker can deliver something exceptional, such as the devices with folding screens we have seen recently, it is hard to see how they can charge any more for smartphones,” the expert analyst explained.
“We’ve already seen that a psychological barrier is reached by many consumers when you hit the £1,000 price point for a smartphone.
He added: “Most people are just not prepared to spend that much on a smartphone when the difference between a high-end and mid-tier device is diminishing.”
Here's the full list of launch prices, plus the price adjusted for inflation...
We’ve asked Apple for comment and will update this story with any response.
Apple’s next iPhone may have already been leaked, courtesy of some early phone cases.
In other news, the iPhone 11 ‘will charge to 50% in just 30 minutes’ thanks to new ultra-fast plug and cable.
The phone could also be ‘coming in two new colours’ we’ve never seen from Apple before, report claims.
Would you be tempted by a cheaper, lower-spec iPhone? Let us know in the comments!
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