Apple’s 2018 iPhone Could Have Significant Design Changes
Apple could be working on a new feature for an upcoming low-cost iPhone later this year, according to a new report.
Famed analyst and Apple forcaster, Ming-Chi Kuo, from KGI securities (via MacRumours) has issued an investor’s note predicting that Apple will launch a low-cost iPhone with dual-sim capabilities later this year.
Kuo thinks that Apple will produce a 6.1-inch LCD display iPhone that could cost as little as $550 – $149 cheaper than the 4.7-inch iPhone 8 and $249 cheaper than the 5.5-inch iPhone 8 Plus. The price points seem to range between $550 and $750 according to Kuo, with the more expensive options offering dual-sim.
This follows on from a previous Bloomberg report that also claimed Apple is working on new, larger models – including a huge 6.5-inch phablet. Kuo has previously claimed that these bigger iPhones will replace the 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch models that have been a staple of the yearly Apple release cycle since the design revamp in 2014. They would also be the biggest iPhones ever released.
It’s not uncommon to see lower-tier Android devices include dual-sim functionality because it’s an important feature in developing markets, where cheap international calls and cheaper handsets are popular. In western markets however, in the US and UK at least, it’s a rarity. A story from last year may explain why.
“The truth is, carriers make too much money off of international plans,” said one US carrier rep who spoke to TechRadar at MWC 2017.
“Their profit evaporates as soon as a second SIM card is present. You’re not going to see it on the biggest phones.”
I’m not entirely sure how much leverage carriers have over the likes of Apple, Samsung and Google – three of the biggest companies in the world – but it could partially explain why dual-sim is such a rarity here.
If Apple does go down the dual-sim route, whilst dramatically dropping the price of two its core devices, then expect Android manufacturers to follow suit (many already offer dual-sim), but also expect travelling with a second sim card to save money quickly become the norm.