If we are to believe a Bloomberg report that surfaced a few hours ago, Apple is working on new versions of the iPhone. Of course you knew that all along, right? But no, the iPhone in question here is not the successor to the iPhone 4 – but a much rumored “nano” version of the phone that would be smaller than the current iPhones by some measure – apart from being much cheaper. In fact, Bloomberg’s source says that he has already seen a prototype of the nano iPhone! Note that this is being reported by Bloomberg and not just any other blog.
The idea seems to bring new iPhone versions that would be lighter on the pockets and for the same reason, make the device attractive to users who until now did not consider buying an iPhone just because it is expensive. Think about it. Of late, Google’s Android has managed to pip the growth of iOS thanks to the large variety of devices the platform offers at various price ranges. In the last quarter of 2010, Google’s Android more than tripled its market share in the smartphones sector globally with unprecedented growth. Apple on the other hand, even with its impressive sales figures is still at 16% when compared to Google’s 32.9%.
Apple has been from day one, concentrating only on the high end segment and still managed to sell a huge number of iPhones. But it would be too much to expect from Apple to “beat” Android only with a single device. Now, if they decide to move down the price and affordability ladder, and offer the same experience that the higher priced iPhone provides (of course, with some trade-off like screen size for example), I am sure there would still be many takers.
The new iPhone nano would reportedly sell unlocked for around $200 – which would make it within the reach of people in markets like India and China where the iPhone is considered a rich man’s toy. According to the source, if the project hasn’t been scrapped by Apple, the iPhone Nano could be launched by mid-2011. The phone is said to be “one-third smaller than the iPhone 4, and it had no “home” button” according to the Bloomberg source.
Let us see if Apple does manage to bring this nano iPhone soon. As a person who has shied away from buying the iPhone – thanks to its ridiculous pricing here in India, this one sure has me interested.
