Apple’s new iPhone could cost an eye-watering £760 – but this amazing bundle could sweeten the deal
THE new iPhone launches today and is expected to cost at least £760 - but one expert reckons Apple has a clever trick to persuade you to part with your cash.
The price of the new handset - thought to be called the iPhone X or iPhone 8 - is £160 more than the current iPhone 7, and hundreds more than top-of-the-range Android phones.
Mark Moskowitz, an analyst for Barclays, believes he knows how the tech giant will sweeten the deal, reports Metro.
He claims anyone buying the new handsets will get a free Apple Music subscription and 200 GB of free iCloud storage.
Although the giveaway bundle - worth worth £118 or $156 in the US - makes the overall price seems lower, Apple will expect to rake in MORE cash when the subscriptions run out after 12 months.
Moskowitz wrote in a note to clients: "Considering consumers’ sensitivity to the price gap, we explore how Apple could offer purchasers of iPhone 8 a free subscription bundle of one year of Apple Music and one year of 200 GB iCloud storage.
"Such a move could make a $1,000+ iPhone 8 seem more within reach, with the $156 in services serving as a quasi-discount or rebate."
He went on to say the ruse could not only boost handset sales but eventually increase Apple’s revenue from subscriptions.
Apple is expected to release three new gadgets today with a regular and Plus size iPhone - which may be called Edition - and a rumoured super-premium iPhone X.
The Dutch firm LetsGoDigital claimed it was recently sent a mock-up of the box for the iPhone X.
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However, tech journalist Evan Blass suggested it would actually incorporate both names and be called the iPhone X Edition.
He tweeted: "Edition will be part of the 'best' iPhone's branding - whether iPhone X Edition or otherwise."
The flagship model, which may cost more than £1,000, is tipped to feature a distinctive new design with a curved OLED screen, but without a physical home button.
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They are likely to look similar to the current iPhone 7 and 7 Plus but include improved “brains” and cameras.
For the first time in an iPhone, there could also be wireless charging.
A new Apple Watch and a 4K resolution Apple TV are also reportedly due to be announced on September 12 at the firm’s Apple Park campus in California.
John Gruber, founder of the Mac-focused blog Daring Fireball, thinks the price will be high due to the sophistication of the device and suggested the iPhone 8 will be regarded as a "Pro" version of the gadget.
Apple has already released two versions of the iPad - a basic model and the super powerful iPad Pro - as well as a pricey Macbook Pro laptop.
Gruber wrote: "Why shouldn’t there be a deluxe 'Pro' tier for phones?
"For many people, phones are every bit as much an essential professional tool as their laptops. For some people, even more so.
"And I’d bet my bottom dollar there are more people who consider their iPhone a 'pro' tool (and are willing to pay 'pro' prices) than who think so regarding their iPad, and we’ll have had iPad Pros for two years by the time new iPhones are announced in September.
"If there are iPad Pros and MacBook Pros, why not iPhone Pros?"
It was recently claimed that the iPhone 8 will feature facial recognition instead of a fingerprint scanner, allowing owners to unlock the device using their face.
The gadget is expected to come with a super high definition OLED "infinity screen".
You can check out all the latest Apple rumours here.
