iPhone 5S Launched in Grey Market?

iPhone 5S Launched in Grey Market?

Apple has not launched the iPhone 5S or 5C in India. But you can still buy one. The catch: You have to shell out big bucks for these devices. To be precise, the asking rate for the basic model of the iPhone 5S is between Rs 65,000 and Rs 1,00,000, depending on who you ask, and in which city.

    The iPhone 5C is difficult to find as dealers in these grey markets say that there is no demand for it, but it can be bought on websites like eBay for around Rs 55,000. The devices are factory-unlocked, which means you don’t get official warranty. The unlocked version of the 16GB iPhone 5S costs $649 (around Rs 40,000) in the US, while the iPhone 5C costs $549 (around Rs 34,000).

    New iPhones have always commanded premium prices in grey markets like Gaffar Market in Delhi, and Heera Panna and Alfa in Mumbai, largely because these devices are officially rolled out in the country several months after their international launch.

    Apple is considered a premium brand and people who look at it as a status symbol are willing to pay exorbitant prices for bragging rights of being the first to own the new iPhone models before anyone else does. But this time the prices are touching a new high, particular for the goldcoloured iPhone 5S model.

    “There is a huge demand for the champagne-coloured iPhone 5S. I just sold a piece with 16GB storage to a person in Patna for Rs 1,08,000 through eBay,” said a Delhi-based dealer, on the condition of anonymity. He added that he had one more unit of the same colour, “but it is the 64GB model and is at an asking price of Rs 1,70,000”. “iPhone 5S in white or space grey is cheaper. I can give you the 64GB model for Rs 1,30,000,” he said.

    The rates outside Delhi are less, but not by much. A Hyderabad-based phone dealer, who also maintains an e-commerce website called Lets-Go-Digital, said that he was selling 16GB iPhone 5S in the coveted gold colour at Rs 1,05,000. The iPhone 5S in grey was available at Rs 77,000.

    In Mumbai, Manish Khatri, who has a phone store, but doesn’t sell phones without an official warranty, said the price of iPhone 5S is between Rs 65,000 and Rs 75,000 for the 16GB model in the city’s grey market. However, the gold-coloured device costs around Rs 85,000. If you cannot spend this kind of money on a phone and yet want an iPhone, your only option is to wait.

iPhone 5 is SELLING LIKE HOT CAKES

Basic model of the iPhone 5S is available between 65,000-1,00,000 in grey market

    iPhone 5C is difficult to find in grey markets, but it can be bought on websites like eBay for around Rs 55,000

    The gold-coloured iPhone 5S model is the most sought after. “There is a huge demand for the champagne colour iPhone 5S. I just sold a piece with 16GB storage to a person in Patna for 1,08,000 through eBay,” said a Delhi based dealer

The devices are factory unlocked, which means you don’t get official warranty