Why There Will be Two New iPhone Models Announced Tuesday, Not One
Image via CrunchBaseA lot of my favorite developer friends are convinced there will be just one new iPhone model. Not just two. A big part of their reasoning is "this is what Apple always does, and therefore this is what they are going to do this time".
My bet is one TWO new models, and iPhone 4s and and iPhone 5. Here'siwhy.
ONE) They have a bunch of iPhone 4 models with a lot of older parts that have lower margins and screw up the supply chain. Having different models for CDMA/ GSM etc is a real pain in the ass and oh yeah, it hurts profits. If apple just had to sell one iPhone 4 version with one air interface chip what would the profit impact be? Well guess what, they make those now. So why not redo your flagship with the new chipsets for a higher margin per unit? If there is enough of a business reason, people change release and product patterns to accommodate.
At the same time they are losing share gains to Android and need a $99 model to compete in the marketplace. The logic here is to take the existing 4 design, do one chip that is GSM/CDMA with compatibility across a bunch of bands to gain share. Things are different than when Apple first launched in terms of the profit from the phone relative to the profit form the things they make on the phone.
TWO) They need something new to compete with Samsung which has copied the form factor/ capabilities of last years model. This means a larger 4 inch screen, an A5 chip and hopefully a lot more battery life/ power on the device.
Beyond that, Apple is going to focus exentsively on preserving market share in iPad. The Android onslaught is having it's effect and the single biggest advantage Apple has is owning the tablet space. They are going to link their product strengths in tablet, with phone and other form factors every chance they get to preserve margins and advantage. My bet would be tho with $200 perfectly excellent Tablets running Ice Cream Sandwich next year, this is going to be challenging.
The preceding article is from one of our external contributors. It does not represent the opinion of Benzinga and has not been edited.
