While Apple's new iPhone 5 costs about $700 (NIS 2,750) in the US for a 16 gigabyte version, in Israel the smartphone will be sold in private stores for prices starting at NIS 4,800 and going up to NIS 7,000, and after ordering buyers will have to wait for between five days to three weeks.
At present the iPhone 5 is sold in Apple stores with the SIM card locked, while in other countries such as Canada (NIS 2,800), Germany (NIS 3,445), and the UK (NIS 3,360) it can be purchased with the phone unlocked.
The iPhone 5 will reach Israeli stores in December. Meanwhile it can be personally imported but in addition to shipping costs NIS 930 customs duties must be paid.
In addition to the smartphone itself, the iPhone 5 requires a nano-SIM card which costs NIS 99 at Cellcom Israel Ltd. (NYSE:CEL; TASE:CEL) and NIS 88 at Orange franchisee Partner Communications Ltd. (Nasdaq: PTNR; TASE: PTNR). The other cellular carriers will soon start selling nano-SIM cards.
Alongside the arrival of the iPhone 5 to private stores, new regulations come into effect allowing importers to import phones without requiring approval from the Ministry of Communications.
The reform will enable importers to bring in new smartphone models like the Samsung Nexus but market sources believe this step will not significantly bring down prices.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on October 3, 2012
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