March 2 (Reuters) – Apple Inc on Monday launched the iPhone 17e, a more affordable smartphone model starting at $599 with 256 GB of storage as it seeks to defend its share in the fiercely competitive global phone market.
The move comes as memory chip prices climb amid a global shortage, signaling Apple is willing to shoulder some component cost pressure to make its lowest-priced models more attractive.
By offering more storage at the same price point, Apple is positioning the 17e as a better value option as it looks to attract new users and defend market share against rivals facing supply constraints.
Some analysts believe that increasing storage capacity at the same starting price is actually a price cut, since customers previously had to pay extra to get higher capacity.
Customers in more than 70 countries and regions can pre-order the iPhone 17e starting at 6:15 a.m. Pacific time on Wednesday, and the device will go on sale on March 11.
The iPhone 17e is powered by Apple’s latest generation ‌A19 chip, which is built with 3nm technology and marks a performance upgrade for the company’s entry-level product line.
The device also includes Apple’s new C1X modem, which the company says delivers faster cellular speeds while using less power.
The 17e gets MagSafe support for the first time in the ‘e’ series, allowing users to access Apple’s magnetic ecosystem of chargers and accessories and enable wireless charging speeds of up to 15 watts, compared to previous models’ slower standard Qi charging.
Apple also launched a redesigned iPad Air on Monday, powered by the new M4 chip, with prices starting at $599 for the 11-inch model and $799 for the larger 13-inch version.
Separately, Information reported on Monday that Google has, at the company’s request, explored hosting servers in its data centers to use Gemini to support upcoming Siri versions while meeting Apple’s privacy standards.
Apple and Google did not immediately respond to Reuters’ request for comment on the report.
(Reporting by Akash Sriram in Bengaluru and Stephen Nellis in San Francisco; Editing by Anil D’Silva)
