Apple is in the news for all the wrong reasons. The Tim Cook-owned company has hiked the iPhone prices in India such as iPhone 11 Pro Max, iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 8 in India. However, the prices of iPhone XR, iPhone 11, iPhone 7, iPad, Apple Watch and Mac laptops remain as such without any increase. This is a good sign because students normally buy Mac laptops and iPhone prices in India hike won’t affect them. Moreover, the company has started to assemble iPhone XR and iPhone 7 in India and the prices are not increased. It’s high time that Apple should consider investment for assembling iPhones in India under Make in India initiative to avoid price increase in the future.
According to the company sources, the iPhone prices in India are mainly attributed to the steep hike in the basic customs duty aka BCD. Moreover, the Government also removed the earlier exemption from BCD/Social Welfare Surcharge in the Union Budget for 2020-21. This move has prompted the company to hike the cost by a huge margin. It remains to be seen as to whether the company hiked the cost due to the Coronavirus. With the slowdown in the Chinese supply chain, the manufacturers are finding it difficult to keep a huge pile of stock as they normally do previously.
After the price hike, the 64GB model of the iPhone 11 Pro Max costs INR 111,200 instead of INR 109,000. The 256GB will cost a massive INR 125,200, while the 512GB variant is up for grabs at Rs 143,200. Talking about the iPhone 11 Pro, you will have to pay INR 101,200 for the 64GB storage model.
While the 256GB model costs INR 115,200, the 512GB is up for grabs at INR 133,200. Apple also increased the cost of the iPhone 11 pro by INR 1300. If you would like to buy iPhone 8 Plus, you need to pay INR 50600 for the 64GB storage. The 128GB storage model is priced at INR 55600 instead of the retail price of INR 49900. The iPhone 8 with 64GB storage costs INR 40500, while the 128GB model is priced at INR 45500.
In yet another development, Apple is gearing up to launch its first online storage by the end of 2020. The company will also open the first retail store in Mumbai before the end of Q1 2021. The announcement by Apple assumes significance with the Government relaxing the local sourcing norms for electronics.
