Which Market Segment the New iPhone Will Take

Apple is introduced the new iPhone which nicknamed 4G and i find it fascinating but I do not think I would buy one soon. I just got my iPad which can do most of the iPhones function but with a better resolution displayed on a larger screen. I find the iPad to be a “Phenomenal device” that keep on amazing me every time I use it. I never used Apple’s products until I bought the iPhone model (3Gs) last year. I was amazed by its simplicity and ease of use. However I found its price to be a challenge especially for the regular users who use their phones as a simple device to communicate. Such users would not need the thousands of applications offered in the iTunes store. Many customers in the Far East and the Middle East need a mobile communication device at the lowest price possible, unfortunately Apple does not offer such mobile phones. Students in India who spend less than Rs. 600 ($13) use their mobile phones for sports updates, playing games and downloading software but spent less on local calling and SMS messaging (Jha, 2008). Mobile phone penetrations in the Far East countries (like Philippines) depend on the lower-income segments. The model for serving high income segment would not work for the low-income segment according to Anderson and Kupp (2008). So the new iPhone might be amazing but do we need that amusement?

References:

Anderson, J., & Kupp, M. (2008). Serving the poor: drivers of business model innovation in mobile. [Article]. Info, 10(1), 5-12. doi: 10.1108/148366908108501 20

Jha, S. (2008). Understanding mobile phone usage pattern among college-goers. [Article]. ICFAI Journal of Services Marketing, 6(1), 51-61.