Score one for old(er) smartphones.
Thanks to a heavily backed marketing campaign, the iPhone 3GS is managing to sell extremely well. AT&T has been selling the device to budget-conscious consumers at a $49 price point for those too intimidated by the heftier price tags associated with the new iPhone 4.
In fact, as AppleInsider reports, the 3GS has actually begun outselling some of the top-selling Android phones like HTC’s Inspire and Motorola’s Atrix, available on AT&T’s network.
The creative idea to go back and sell the ‘outdated’ version of the iPhone as a cost-friendly device has become a genius move. At first, AT&T was selling the phone for $99 with a new two-year service agreement, while the iPhone 4 was $100+ more expensive.
Now, it’s even cheaper, at an irresistable $49.
This is helping to eliminate one of the strongest assets Android had over the iPhone, which was its variability in products and prices. Customers who don’t even necessarily know about Android end up buying one because it’s cheap and has the added functionality. On the other side, buying an iPhone was from day one a huge production and something that involved a lot of research.
By reaching into that impulse buy market, Apple has done quite well. The next question is whether or not the company will continue this trend moving forward – offering older iPhones as new ones are introduced.
We’ll find out when the iPhone 5 comes out.
