圖：蘋果產品最新資訊網站Apple'N'Apps
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????過去一年中，蘋果公司（Apple）可能推出一款低價手機的傳聞在坊間傳得紛紛揚揚。據稱，部分市場認為高端iPhone定價過于高昂，而這款低價手機正是瞄準這類市場。 ????上周四，特雷弗?謝里丹——這位作者的歷史記錄我們難以擔保——在蘋果產品最新資訊網站Apple'N'Apps上撰文，描繪了一種似乎可信的情景。 ????他引述三位不具名的“獨立知情人士”的話，宣稱蘋果公司今年秋天將發布兩款iPhone：1) 已經被連篇累牘大書特書的iPhone 5；2) 價格較低，在蘋果公司內部被稱為iCloud iPhone的手機。 ????“iPhone 5將是高質量的升級版，但這場新機上市大戲的主角將是更便宜的iCloud iPhone。蘋果公司想推出一臺價格低廉的iPhone，同時仍然維持其行業領先的利潤率水平。據我們的知情人士透露，蘋果公司打算采用容量更小的閃存來實現這一目標，而這種閃存本身也在跌價。電子制造領域領先市場研究公司iSuppli對iPhone 4零部件的成本分析顯示，存儲部件占到總制造成本的15%，對3G版來說也是如此。在上百萬臺手機上降低15%的成本將省下巨額開支。iCloud iPhone是專為十分希望采用蘋果云服務（iCloud）進行存儲的用戶打造的機型，這樣他們就能大幅減少直接存儲在iPhone上的內容。此舉不僅有助于蘋果公司將蘋果云服務打造成一大特色服務，還為完全采用蘋果數字媒體環境（Apple ecosystem）找到了理由。” ????據謝里丹稱，蘋果公司的目標定價是400美元，比無補貼的iPhone 4便宜約200美元。假如運營商按慣例提供補貼，對消費者來說，這款手機的初始購機成本將降為零。 ????譯者：清遠 |
????There's been much speculation over the past year about the possibility of Apple (AAPL) shipping a lower-cost phone to compete in markets where the top-of-the-line iPhones have proved too expensive. ????Writing in Apple'N'Apps Thursday, Trevor Sheridan -- a writer whose track record we can't vouch for -- offers what nonetheless seems like a plausible scenario. ????Citing three unnamed "independent sources," he claims that Apple is set to launch two iPhones this fall: 1) The iPhone 5 about which so much has already been written. And 2) a cheaper device known within Apple as the iCloud iPhone. ????"The iPhone 5 will be a quality upgrade, but the star of the show will be the cheaper iCloud iPhone alternative. Apple wants to offer a lower priced iPhone while still maintaining their industry leading profit margins. According to our sources, Apple is going to do this by using less on board Flash memory which are also falling in price. When looking at the iSuppli cost breakdown of the parts of the iPhone 4, the storage accounts for 15% of the cost to build the device, and that's true for the 3GS as well. Reducing 15% of the cost across millions of units is a substantial savings. The iCloud model will be for users who will want to use the iCloud heavily for storage, and keep a lot less on the iPhone itself. This will also help Apple make iCloud a feature by itself and reason to use the entire Apple ecosystem." ????According to Sheridan, Apple is aiming for a $400 price point, about $200 less than the unsubsidized cost of the iPhone 4. Assuming carriers offer their usual subsidies, that could bring the initial cost to consumers to $0.00. |
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