---
title: This Country Is Getting Discounts on iPhones that America Will Never See
description: Bloomberg reports that as Apple sees sales droop in China, it is turning to India to juice iPhone sales by offering major discounts on older models.
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published: '2017-06-12T15:59:59.000Z'
modified: '2023-12-15T14:46:21.000Z'
section: Technology
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> **Disclosure:** We research all brands listed and may earn a fee from our partners. Research and financial considerations may influence how brands are displayed. Not all brands are included. [Learn more](https://money.com/page/disclaimer/).

![A sale person scans an Apple i-Phone 5s as sales start for the i-phone 5c and 5s in the Apple Store, on September 20, 2013 in Berlin, Germany.](https://img.money.com/2017/06/170612-apple-iphone-5s-discounts.jpg)

$250 for an iPhone? It is indeed a reality, with a few caveats: The price applies only to older-model iPhones, and only in India.

Bloomberg [reports](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-06-12/in-india-apple-is-making-old-iphones-new-again) that as Apple sees [sales droop in China](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-02-06/oppo-huawei-widen-lead-in-china-as-apple-shipments-plummet "Apple Is Getting Pushed Around in China By Local Phone Brands"), it is turning to India to juice sales by offering major discounts on iPhones.

It's a good strategy: Counterpoint Research forecasts Indians will purchase [more than a billion smartphones](http://www.counterpointresearch.com/smartphone-growth-annual-india1q16/ "India Smartphone Market Grew 23% Amid Flat Global Annual Growth") over the next five years.

“We’re very optimistic about our future in this remarkable country, with its very large, young, and tech-savvy population, fast-­growing economy, and improving 4G network infrastructure,” Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook said on Apple’s May 2 [earnings call](http://www.barrons.com/articles/apples-2q-earnings-cook-says-india-moving-fast-as-currency-hurts-china-1493768973 "Apple’s 2Q Earnings: Cook Says India “Moving Fast” As Currency Hurts China").

Yet Apple "made just 3 percent of the smartphones sold in India, the industry’s fastest-­growing market, in the first quarter," Bloomberg reports.

So, it's offering fire sales on older model iPhones. You can buy an iPhone 5s, the equivalent of an iPhone SE, for $300 in India, and during one sale went as low as $250, Bloomberg reports. Mind you, that's still considered very expensive in India, where per capita income is [roughly $1,600 per year](http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GNP.PCAP.CD?locations=IN). Older phones comprised approximately 55% of the 2.6 million devices the company shipped to India in 2016, [Counterpoint Research said](http://www.counterpointresearch.com/ "Home » counterpoint").

“India which surpassed USA to become the second largest smartphone market in terms of users has continued to register strong demand for [smartphones](https://money.com/best-smartphone/)," [Counterpoint writes](http://www.counterpointresearch.com/smartphone-growth-annual-india1q16/) in its most recent India note:

> There is a massive opportunity for every player in the mobile value chain when the second largest market by volume is still under penetrated and growing, while the rest of the world smartphone demand has waned.
> 
> India is the next China.

[Read the full story here.](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-06-12/in-india-apple-is-making-old-iphones-new-again)

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