Apple to Make iPhones in India from 2017, Prices Likely to Fall
Initially, the iPhones will be assembled in Bengaluru, with manufacturing set to start in 2018.
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Indian users can finally dream of buying iPhone at cheaper than usual prices, now that Apple is all set to make them here in the country itself.
Reports strongly suggest that Apple, along with one of its top original equipment manufacturer (OEM), is ready to assemble iPhones in Bengaluru.
Once the assembling of iPhones takes off, Apple hopes to roll-out full-fledged manufacturing from 2018 onwards. All this means that buying an iPhone in India will be cheaper, with custom duty now out of the equation.
We all know that Apple’s biggest manufacturer is Foxconn, which also manufactures for Xiaomi and OnePlus in the country.
But, as things turn out, Apple’s iPhone assembling duties in India will be undertaken by Taiwan-based OEM, Wistron. The assembling is likely to start from April 2017 onwards, giving Apple enough time to work on its production strategy.
In addition to the report, we also did some digging on the Apple India website. We stumbled upon a few job openings for Bengaluru that seemed to confirm this development. Apple’s job listings show up openings for product quality managers and operations programme managers.
The job description says they will be working with the OEM.
It is well known that Apple and the Indian government are nowhere close to reaching a consensus over iPhone’s manufacturing plans. But even the most optimistic wouldn’t have seen this coming.
All in all, Apple’s had a busy schedule in India this year. So far, we’ve had an iOS app development and design centre in Bengaluru and Apple’s first-ever Map development centre in Hyderabad.
Could this assembling plant be the key to Apple solving its Indian market puzzle? Will we finally get cheaper iPhones? Let’s make it happen, Apple.
(Source: The Times of India)
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