A $2,000 phone. In a country where that's more than most people earn in 3 months.
Let that sit for a second.
$AAPL is expected to show its first foldable iPhone on Wednesday, and the rumored price is north of $2,000. In the US that's manageable because T, VZ and TMUS have spent decades hiding the real cost. Trade-in credits, 36-month instalments, "free with plan." Nobody feels the full price.
Here in South Asia? You pay the whole thing. Usually plus import duty.
So the phone Apple builds for a "price-insensitive customer" — their words, basically — becomes a phone most of us look at and scroll past.
And the funny part is the carriers are getting tired of paying too. They've spent this year cutting subsidies to protect their own margins. One analyst said dont expect a free foldable, and any "free iPhone 18 Pro" deal wont last long.
So the money has to come from somewhere. Either Apple sells fewer, or customers absorb it, or carriers eat it again.
I could be wrong. Maybe rich buyers just pay and dont blink. That's been the pattern.
But heres what actually bothers me. AAPL is already up 18% this year going into this. TMUS is down 10%. Same iPhone cycle, completely different starting points. One of those two is priced for good news.
Real question — would you ever pay $2,000 for a phone?
Let that sit for a second.
$AAPL is expected to show its first foldable iPhone on Wednesday, and the rumored price is north of $2,000. In the US that's manageable because T, VZ and TMUS have spent decades hiding the real cost. Trade-in credits, 36-month instalments, "free with plan." Nobody feels the full price.
Here in South Asia? You pay the whole thing. Usually plus import duty.
So the phone Apple builds for a "price-insensitive customer" — their words, basically — becomes a phone most of us look at and scroll past.
And the funny part is the carriers are getting tired of paying too. They've spent this year cutting subsidies to protect their own margins. One analyst said dont expect a free foldable, and any "free iPhone 18 Pro" deal wont last long.
So the money has to come from somewhere. Either Apple sells fewer, or customers absorb it, or carriers eat it again.
I could be wrong. Maybe rich buyers just pay and dont blink. That's been the pattern.
But heres what actually bothers me. AAPL is already up 18% this year going into this. TMUS is down 10%. Same iPhone cycle, completely different starting points. One of those two is priced for good news.
Real question — would you ever pay $2,000 for a phone?
