iPhones are priced ‘high in the extreme’ but they’re worth it, says Apple co-founder Wozniak

Apple’s iPhone has been losing ground to domestic competitors in China.

That is because Chinese smartphone makers offer sophisticated functions at reasonable prices, according to Steve Wozniak, Apple co-founder and one of the pioneers of the personal computer industry.

“Here is what I admire about Chinese phones: really good, intelligent decisions about how to lower the cost but keep enough of the functionality in, because I am into products that are good, well designed, nice looking, but at prices that the average person can afford,” he said.

Apple’s revenues in China fell 14 per cent year-on-year to US$10.7 billion in the first quarter, or 34 per cent on a quarterly basis, although chief executive Tim Cook reaffirmed his confidence about opportunities in the world’s largest smartphone market.

IDC data showed that Apple shipped 9.6 million iPhones in China in the first three months this year, down 26.7 per cent from the same period in 2016. Apple, currently the fourth largest smartphone vendor in China after Huawei, Oppo and Vivo, has seen its market share in the country slip to 9.2 per cent in the first quarter this year from 12.7 per cent in the same period last year.

Still, Wozniak believes the quality of Apple’s product makes it worth the high price tag.

“In life I don’t believe in quantity as much as I do in quality. So you may not have the hugest share in the market or be the No 1, but you should have the best product you can possibly build and Apple qualifies for that,” Wozniak, told reporters after he discussed artificial intelligence with Liu Zihong, chairman and chief executive of Royole, in a technology forum held at Tianan Cyber Park in Dongguan, Guangdong province, on Tuesday.