Cheaper Apple products on the way?

·13 Feb 2013

Apple CEO Tim Cook says that a cheaper iPhone isn’t the only way to make Apple’s flagship smartphone accessible to price-conscious consumers, but the company is making moves to make its products more affordable.

Speaking at the Goldman Sach’s Technology and Internet conference on Tuesday (12 February 2013), Cook addressed queries from media – and directly tackled the issue of making the company’s iPhone more affordable.

In his keynote address, Cook reaffirmed earlier statements which were released by Apple around the same time rumours emerged about a cheaper iPhone hitting the market.

“We wouldn’t do anything we wouldn’t consider a great product,” Cook said, curbing the view that a cheaper iPhone was the answer.

“There are other companies that do that, and that’s just not who we are.”

Cook indicated that with the launch of every successive iPhone model, the previous models had gone down in price. This proved build up demand for the product in more price-conscious markets.

“In the December quarter, we didn’t have enough supply of iPhone 4, so it surprised us as to the level of demand we had for it,” he said.

“We are making moves to make things more affordable. When we came out with iPod it was $399, today you can buy an iPod Shuffle for $49,” Cook said.

“Instead of saying how can we cheapen this iPod to get it lower, we said how can we do a great product, and we were able to do that. The same thing, but in a different concept in some ways.”

Cook went on to describe how Apple tackled a similar issue in the Mac (iMac and Macbook) markets, where there was also a push for a more affordable product.

“We concluded we couldn’t do a great product [cheaply], but what did we do – we invented iPad. Now all of the sudden we have an incredible experience and it starts at $329.”

“Sometimes you can take the issue and you can solve it in different ways,” the Apple chief said.

“I’m not gonna comment about what we’re gonna do in the future, but it’s always broader than that which can be defined by a simple number”.