Friday, August 22, 2008

iPhone debuts unprepared Indian market with irrational and ludicrous price tag

Last night, I almost fall off of my chair laughing, after reading some dumbass PR surrounding iPhone India launch. As a guy who is closely attached with the handset industry, can totally understand the price tag as it takes at least 4 years to break- even, even if you give 500 INR profit every month to your operator after paying 10K INR initially. So it's understandable in some senses, but it's also a clear acknowledgement from operators that they have no hopes on service (post-sales) revenue.

My shots at iPhone India to uncover the reality,

  • It's just a GPRS phone.Calm down! I doubt that too.
  • If there is no subsidy, why network lock-in? Apple should answer this half-assed strategy.
  • No special tariffs for iPhone users.Forget data, at least voice.
  • Don't fall for bells and whistles! iPhone is just a PR drum for operators.
  • Prepare for dumbass spam stuff from your network operator.To be honest, Indian operators have nothing special to offer to your iPhone.
  • Remember that it's an Apple's product.It's not Airtel's or Vodafone's.
  • More than half the features are useless in India.
  • By the time you get 3G here in India, Apple would release at least 3 new models.Even if 3G starts in 2009, it will be experimental only and mass-market adoption can happen only in 2011.
  • Don't pin your hopes on Wi-Fi hotspots , you can rarely find them in India.
  • If you don't have a PC and broadband, it's useless to buy an iPhone.PC and broadband connection are prerequisites for iPod and iPhone.
  • If you are style conscious and just want to flaunt your richness in public then iPhone is just for you and just for you only.
  • If you get any hardware problem, then prepare to run here and there.
  • It's a significant risk to carry 30K device in your pocket in India.
  • You can buy a reasonable notebook or couple of high-end assembled desktop PCs for the same price. If show-off is your need, then go for iPhone.
  • The price will stay same, at least until Apple releases a new model next year. So, don't expect any price reduction for at least one year.
  • iPod touch is far better option and could be a good companion to existing phone if you desperately need some "touchy".
  • iPhone is not yet a corporate device in US itself and I am almost certain that over-cautious Indian businesses will never adopt it.So, no corporate offers and tariffs.yada yada yada.Calm down!!

No comments: