How much luxury is too much luxury?
Phone companies today are beginning to lay heavy emphasis on luxury. It is no longer enough for a phone brand to innovate on the tech aspect, nowadays, these brands are pushing the boundary by dictating consumer experience.
In 2017, phone giant, Apple did something unprecedented by putting a $1000 price tag on a non-specialist phone. At the time there was a backlash as the general public still shared the view that $1000 is too much to pay for an iPhone.
However, true to form, Apple users overlooked the ridiculous price and purchased the product anyways. In that year, it sold 218 million units of iPhones.
This created a trend that has become commonplace with almost all premier smartphones today as $1000 is no longer too much money to spend on a phone.
In hindsight, these devices may be value for money, as you get the perks of numerous dedicated devices, crammed into one portable device.
For example, flagship phones, like the Google Pixel 6, Samsung 22 Ultra, and the iPhone 13 pros can produce pictures and videos that rival even professional cameras. You get the best browsing and social media experience on high-end phones, a responsive A. I built into it, media consumption which can imitate a home theater system save in scope, and much more.
And seeing as most people spend time with their phones, either for work or pleasure, it seems less ridiculous today to pay top dollar for a powerful handheld gadget.
With this in mind, some phones now go for up to $2 million and are being sold.
But, when does it all become too much? When does a phone become too luxurious for just a phone? When an entire market is isolated.
In the past 5 years alone, the average African has been relegated to purchasing low-end phones. See the data here.
Nowadays, only those willing to break the bank or those with a substantial amount of cash flow can buy a high-end flagship phone. The African tech market is dominated by budget phones, with low-end specs for the time being.
The latest trend with these high-end phones is how you have to purchase a phone and its accessories separately. It used to be that you get a phone with a charger, earpiece, and other cool accessories, depending on the brand as some are more generous than others.
However, today, you have to buy the phone and the charger separately, making phones that come with their accessory seem like a privilege to a population battling poverty. And with the push for MagSafe devices, no doubt these brands will become too much of a luxury good for Africans to have access to.
There is a reason Apple has refused to open Apple stores in most parts of Africa, despite claiming that they make phones for everyone, which is simply its low market share in the continent.
Pulse
