Business
Tim Cook is happy as Indians are buying iPhones in large numbers: Read here
iPhone is too expensive for India. We have heard this again and again. But it seems the times are changing. It’s going all well for Apple lately, and the latest quarter earnings report kind of stresses that. Those following the tech space and especially the smartphone industry may recall that Apple had a minuscule market share in the Indian smartphone industry until a few years back. But, that’s no longer the case, with the company registering a fantastic quarter in India where it doubled its business. On top of that, Counterpoint Research is out with its latest report that corroborates Apple’s results.
In Q3 2021, the market research firm claims Apple was the fastest growing brand this quarter with 212 per cent year-on-year growth. While the company now leads the premium smartphone market (phones above Rs 30,000) with a comprehensive 44 per cent market share. Moreover, the market research firm adds that Apple is also leading the ultra-premium segment (phones above Rs 45,000) with a 74 per cent market share. Apple CEO Tim Cook, during the earnings call, said that during fiscal 2021, Apple doubled its business in India, which is a big feat for the company. But, what exactly has changed at Apple that’s driving the sales in the country? We will try to break it down for you in this article.
Bigger iPhone screens
Yes, the display. Since 2017, Apple has evolved its design to offer more screen real estate and get rid of the thick bezel with the signature home button at the bottom. The result is the current iPhone line-up includes iPhone 11, iPhone 12, iPhone 13 series – all of which offer a decent screen size. But, Apple hasn’t given up on its compact form factor idea, and that’s why we still have the iPhone SE 2020, iPhone 12 mini, and iPhone 13 mini.
What this means is, compared to its Android rivals, Apple now offers smartphones with around a 6-inch display which is a good enough size for watching movies, streaming shows or browsing the Internet on the go. Currently, Apple is selling iPhones starting at 4.7-inch screen size all the way to 6.7-inch, which means there’s something for everyone.
Timely iOS updates for everyone
Believe it or not, software updates are important, and Apple has been nailing it for so many years that Google’s Android is yet to have level ground. But, there are reasons for that, which we will explore in some other piece, but largely, this puts users at an advantage when buying an iPhone compared to an Android device.
A recent example is the iOS 15 update that was pushed days after the unveiling of the iPhone 13 series. iOS 15 is available for iPhone 6s users. So a phone that launched in 2015 is still getting updates. While in the parallel Android universe, devices stop getting OS updates after a maximum of three years. That’s almost double the amount compared to Android.
But that’s not the real problem for Android users. Let’s say you bought an Android device in 2021 and are waiting for the Android 12 update by early 2022. But, surprisingly, the Android manufacturer will prefer to release it sooner for newer smartphones launching in 2022 and keeping the 2021 devices in the second phase. Unfortunately, that’s the case with the majority of Android manufacturers globally. And that’s where iPhones succeed.
The Bionic advantage over other chips
Apart from the display and software updates, if there’s another crucial factor that has given iPhones a push it has been the chipset. Apple’s Bionic chipsets are capable processors, and that means, if you’re using the iPhone 11 that launched in 2019, the A13 Bionic chip is still a good processor for most of your everyday tasks, including gaming.
Compared to the Android landscape that majorly has Qualcomm and MediaTek chipsets around the Rs 40,000 mark, the Bionic chip either offers better or comparable performance. Well, you can check benchmark scores to give you a clearer picture, but this is the bottom line.
India’s premium phone segment is stagnant
The premium Android smartphone landscape is passing through a dry spell. And, I don’t mean to say that there are no phones that you can buy, but there is a dearth of decent options that I get to recommend to people whenever there’s a “what to buy” question thrown at me.
When looking at the market, the offerings above Rs 50,000 include limited Android options, like the OnePlus 9 Pro, Oppo Find X2, and Vivo X70 Pro+. There are a few Samsung phones, but then they are too costly and come at around a lakh.
Funnily, this isn’t the case with iPhones. With the iPhone 13 launch last month, Apple dropped the prices of iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini in India. While the iPhone 11 and iPhone XR – both with a 6.1-inch display – continue to sell at accessible price points. What this means is there’s an iPhone from Rs 30,000 to Rs 180,000. The recent festive online sales saw massive discounts on the iPhone 12, and even Counterpoint adds that the strong demand for the iPhone 12 was one major factor in Apple’s growth.
Business
Apple is giving a huge discount on its gadgets: Details inside
If you want to buy an iPhone and were waiting for a nice offer, then we have a piece of good news for you! Amazon Summer Sale May 2022 has begun and they are offering major discounts on various smartphones, laptops, and smart TVs, among others.
The sale is live now on the e-commerce platform with no-cost EMI options and exchange discounts on various products. In addition to this, Amazon has also partnered with several banks including ICICI, Kotak Bank, and RBL so that customers get instant discounts of up to 10% using their cards and EMI transactions.
Customers can easily enjoy this summer sale and get massive discounts on iPhones. They can also compare prices on Flipkart Big Saving Days Sale 2022 before making a purchase.
Amazon Summer Sale May 2022: Discount offer on iPhone 13
Apple’s coveted phone model iPhone 13 in the 128 GB storage model will be available during the Amazon Summer Sale May 2022 for Rs 64,900. The MRP of the phone is Rs 79,900. This means that the customers will be able to enjoy a discount of up to Rs 15,000 on the purchase of the iPhone 13.
If you have an old iPhone in working condition then you will also be eligible to receive another additional discount worth up to Rs 17,000 on the iPhone 13.
Buy at Rs. 64,900 (MRP – Rs. 79,900)
Features of Apple iPhone 13
The iPhone is powered by an A15 Bionic processor with 6 core CPU. Apart from this, it has 16 core neural engines. With the iPhone 13, up to 512 GB of storage will be available. The iPhone 13 has a 6.1-inch Retina XDR display with 1000 nits brightness.
The iPhone 13 has a 12-megapixel dual rear camera setup. This time a new wide-angle camera has been given, whose aperture is f/1.6. With this, there is support for sensor optical stabilisation. Night mode has been made better than before. The second lens is also 12 megapixels ultra-wide and has an aperture of f/2.4.