Apple is likely more than six months away from announcing anything about the next line of iPhones, but that isn't stopping industry analysts from predicting how the rumored handsets could fare in the market.
Analyst Richard Windsor of Edison Investment Research says that, if the rumors of a new budget-minded iPhone model are to be believed, Apple should expect to see a tepid-at-best reception.
Windsor points to a crop of unconfirmed reports that claim Apple is looking to make a 4-inch budget-priced handset, popularly referred to as the iPhone 5SE. Early reports speculate that in addition to the smaller screen, the 5SE would have the iPhone 5 case design with updated internals, including support for Apple Pay.
Such reports are common in the early parts of the year as Apple looks to begin testing and early manufacturing of new iPhone models. Given the company's strict policy of guarding information on new products, these rumors are usually difficult to prove until Apple holds its annual unveiling event in the late summer, though in this case the 5SE is rumored to be headed for introduction as early as next month.
Should Apple make good on these rumored specs, however, Windsor believes Cook and Co. could see a repeat of the underwhelming reception previously seen by the iPhone 5c.
"The problem with the iPhone 5c is that it was not cheap enough to appeal to the mass market, meaning that most users either paid up for the real thing or bought the much cheaper 4s," Windsor said.
"Looking at the rumored specification of the iPhone 5se, it is almost certainly not going to be a mid-range product and hence we think it will be a non-event when it comes to volumes."
Windsor noted that the balancing act between performance and cost presents a particular problem for Apple. While the 5SE could maintain a lower price tag by reducing storage and memory, limiting the device too much would hamstring performance.
"A lower-end product would mean that apps would no longer run consistently across all iPhones, adding complexity, cost and difficulty for developers," he said.
"The lack of software consistency in the Google ecosystem and all of the other ecosystems based on Android is a major reason why the user experience is second rate and why developers earn less money from targeting these devices."
Thus, Windsor said, he believes Apple will once again be aiming the device into a small share of the market where most users will either spend a bit more for a better iPhone model, or save a few bucks and opt for an older iPhone or cheaper Android handset.
