Bloomberg is reporting that the addition of a Gold iPhone to the White/Silver and Space Gray lineup may pay off handsomely in China. According to the report, the Gold iPhone is likely to be the big seller in China, instead of the multi-color iPhone 5c.
“The iPhone 5c is supposed to be Apple’s breakout product in China. It’s more affordable than the high-end model and comes in five pastel colors,” David Paul Morris writes for Bloomberg. “But Apple may only need one color to capture Chinese status-seekers with money to spend, and just the top-of-the-line iPhone 5s has it: gold. While that may seem gaudy to some Western consumers, it could be a huge hit in China.”
In an email to Bloomberg, James Yan, an analyst at IDC in China said: “Gold-colored gadgets are popular among high-end consumers. We are not surprised that some handset vendors have designed such products. Chinese consumers generally have the ‘buying-for-face’ culture. This phenomenon is more obvious in consumer electronics. Gold-colored gadgets are popular among high-end consumers.”
Many pundits were critical of the Gold iPhone, with some suggesting it’s tacky and would only be bought by a certain type of person. See video below:
However, nothing could be further from the truth.
John Gruber on the Gold iPhone:
Speaking of what things look like, I should mention that my 5S review unit is, yes, the gold one. Everyone I’ve shown it to thinks it looks nice. Not everyone says it’s the one they themselves would choose, but they all think it looks nice. That, in and of itself, is something, considering the collective “Yuck” so many of us (including, yes, yours truly) gave when rumors first leaked of a gold-colored iPhone. Personally, my gripe isn’t the gold but the white face. I’ve just never liked white surrounding my iOS displays.
