Only about two weeks after the release of iPhone 5c, iPhone 5c prices continue to fall—which suggests that Apple may not be selling many units of the colorful handset, according to an Oct 4 report in the Los Angles Times.
Usually price cuts on technology items occur because of one of either two reasons:
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A product is legacy and a new version is going to hit the market, which happens all the time in the PC industry.
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A product has poor sales, like in the recent case of the original Microsoft Surface tablet (among many others).
The iPhone 5c was just released, so the Apple handset certainly isn't legacy. That indicates poor sales are the reason for the price cuts.
Originally, Apple said the 16GB iPhone 5s would sell for $99. Soon afterward, Wal-Mart announced that it would see this model iPhone 5c for just $79.00 with a two-year contract, a price which undercut all competitors—including Apple retail stores.
On Thursday, Best Buy said that it was giving a $50.00 Best Buy gift card to any customer purchasing the iPhone 5c. This card can be used at the time of purchase, effectively reducing the iPhone 5c price to just $49.00.
Then on Friday, Wal-Mart announced that it's going to reduce the price to just $45.00 with a two-year contract—undercutting Best Buy by $4.00. According to Wal-Mart, this new price will last until at least December 25.
Price cuts on Apple products are very unusual, especially so soon after a new product has been released. But again, when big box retailers start slashing prices it's a sign that sales for that item are slow, and the uniqueness of Apple price cuts underscores this possibility.
Of course, there is also the possibility that this is all part of a larger Apple strategy.
Might Apple be positioning the high quality iPhone 5c to be an economical smartphone that most customers can afford? Apple does, after all, strictly control the prices of Apple products—or, at least, it has previously.
The iPhone 5c is an advanced version of iPhone 5 and is available in five colorful plastic cases (pink, green, white, yellow and blue). Its initial $99.00 price is $100.00 less than that of its cousin, the iPhone 5s, which is backordered online and very difficult to find in Apple retail stores.
