Apple may double down with Fall iPhone update

For months already, bloggers and journalists have been offering dueling visions of this year’s Apple smartphone update. A new report suggests that it’s not an either or choice between the iPhone 4S and iPhone 5, but rather that the mothership will offer consumers both models — too cool to be true?

Fortune, quoting a Deutsche Bank analyst write up, says that competing 2011 iPhone update rumors aren’t in fact mutually exclusive.

“With Nokia and RIM struggling,” said Deutsche Bank’s Chris Whitmore, “the time is right for Apple to aggressively penetrate the mid range smart-phone market (i.e. $300 to 500 category) to dramatically expand its [total addressable market] and market share.”

The analyst says that an unlocked iPhone 4S selling for $349 with a pre-paid voice/data plan could be the key to cracking African, Asian and Latin American markets — the last where Nokia and RIM still have some strength.

And, why not? Earlier this year, Tim Cook told analysts that Apple was unwilling to cede the prepaid market to the competition and that the company was planning “clever” products in response to those opportunities.

Everyone seems to be focused on overseas markets vis-a-vis prepaid, but I would very much like to have “low-cost” iPhone without contract…

How about you?

via MacNN

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