Skip to main content

Apple offers customised iMacs, MacBooks in India - here's why

Apple is giving its Indian customers the capability to order customised versions of its entire range of computing devices. The configure-to-order and build-to-order options would be available for the MacBook Air (click to buy), Mac Mini, iMac and other computers. 

Under the scheme customers from India would be able to request custom needs such as enhanced memory and storage or inclusion of more powerful graphics cards when they purchase a machine from Apple. 

This is the first time that Apple would be offering customisation of their products in the Indian market, in spite of the fact that users in India had been requesting the CTO and BTO features that have been part of the company's package in several countries. Apple has never offered its entire bouquet of computing devices in the country and most upgrades were sought once the customers got their hands on the machines. 

Has it come too late though?

MacBook Air (2020)

An official working for one of Apple's service delivery across the south of India believes that this move by the Cupertino-based tech giant should have come much earlier. "Take a look at the grey market operations and how much the company tends to lose because customers usually go to upgrade their Macs to these shops located in major cities such as Bangalore, Chennai and Hyderabad," the official says requesting anonymity. 

For Apple, India has shifted from being on the periphery in the first decade of the new millennium to being a key market. Tim Cook had said during an investor call late in 2019 that emerging markets led by India, Brazil, Thailand, Turkey and Mainland China had seen double-digit growth during the December quarter. 

What do the users get?

A notice on the Apple India website says customers interested to get upgrades or want to customise their purchases could get in touch with local Apple authorised resellers various options and calculate what they would have to pay for enhancing a graphics card or simply adding some memory to their preferred machine. 

The company is promising delivery within four to five weeks after orders are placed and payments made. In the past, customers had no choice but to go with base models of the computing devices, which means a MacBook Pro would only have 8GB of RAM. 

Would it really change things?

However, it remains to be seen whether the stiff pricing that Apple is quoting for such upgrades could still prove a dampener for many users. For example, the company is charging $400 for an extra 16 GB of RAM, but a trip to Bangalore's grey market could result in savings of up to 30-50% on such a deal. Of course, there is no warranty once you get the device opened by uncertified hands. 

How Tim Cook's Apple sees it differently

From the company's perspective, this only shows that Apple and its CEO Tim Cook are serious about India as a market. Cook had waxed eloquent about how customers in the country were boosting sales of both iPhones and iPads over most of 2019. 

That growth might have been driven by the multiple price cuts that Apple brought in for the iPhone XR, but the fact remains that Apple as a brand has matured enough for Cook to consider shifting production to India and also committing to open its own online stores in the country. 

The iPhone 11 series (click to buy) also saw good traction amongst the Indian customers, given that the device was priced aggressively and Apple followed a sound channel strategy to drive its sales. Immediately after this success, Apple announced that it would be bringing the HomePod smart speaker to India to compete with Google Home and the Amazon Echo. 

Of course, the Covid-19 pandemic may have stymied sales but the fact remains that Apple is bullish nonetheless and the next twelve months could see the company bringing more of its products and services to India. Who knows, Apple TV Plus could soon join the Bollywood bandwagon and take on Netflix and Amazon Prime. 

Via: MacRumors 



from TechRadar - All the latest technology news https://ift.tt/2X6LLOA
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Mother's Day 2020 gift ideas: 18 gadgets and gizmos for tech-savvy Aussie mums

Raising a family is not an easy job, and the women who care for us each and every day deserve to be told how special they are each and every day. While we tend to forget to do that, Mother’s Day reminds us we need to celebrate the women in our lives, whether they’re our own mothers or our wives and partners helping us raise the young ones. Mother’s Day 2020 is fast approaching (with under two weeks to go), and there’s a pretty good chance you won’t be able to take her out to her favourite restaurant this year, or even get to a store to shop for something she might like. So we have to get creative, and TechRadar’s Australian team has put together this little list of great tech gift ideas that you can buy online and have delivered in time for May 10. But you will need to get a wriggle on as delivery supply chains are under strain with more people shopping online. Whether she’s a whiz in the kitchen, loves to cosy up with a book or entertain at home, we’ve got a gadget or gizmo that’s s...
Post a Comment
Read more

Amazon Australia has specials on Bose products all this week

December may have just begun, but the world's largest online marketplace is already feeling the Christmas spirit.  To kick off the month’s festivities, Amazon Australia is celebrating  ‘7 Days of Deals’ with Bose's superb audio hardware discounted each day. To begin with, the very popular (and rightly so) Bose QuietComfort 35 II and the more expensive Bose Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 are available for less. To sweeten the deal, Amazon will throw in an Echo speaker as a bonus as well. When you purchase the superb Bose Headphones 700, you will receive a free Amazon Echo Show 5, or if you’d prefer the Bose QuietComfort 35 II, you’ll receive a complimentary Echo Dot. The offer is valid until December 8, or while stocks last. You can buy the same bundles, for the same price if you make the purchase via the Echo Dot or the Echo Show 5 product pages on Amazon. Just make sure you select the bundled headphone in the 'add other items' section on the right. Best noi...
Post a Comment
Read more

Valentine's Day flowers: the best online flower delivery services

February 14 will be here before you know it, and if you, like many others, are searching for that perfect gift, then placing an online order for Valentine's Day flowers is always an easy and romantic option. You can order a beautiful floral arrangement in minutes from a variety of online retailers, including; 1-800-Flowers, Amazon, ProFlowers, Teleflora, and many more. To help you sort through all the Valentine's Day offers, we've rounded up the best online flower delivery services in both the USA and the UK and listed their current promotions. We've also included delivery charges and made sure to mention if you can allocate specific days for delivery. There's a fantastic range of bouquets and gifts available from our selection of florists below, and online delivery from a specialist means you don't have to worry about the usual hassle of buying from a store and getting them home safely. We'll be updating this page as we get closer to the big day so you...
Post a Comment
Read more