Threatened by competition from Samsung and other Android-system smartphones, Apple Inc. is under pressure to sell a cheaper version of the iPhone targeting more customers in emerging markets.

If the Cupertino, California-based company, does roll out a lower-cost entry-level iPhone, rumors are that company might use an all-plastic body or a mixture of plastic and metal made by a U.S.-based electronic manufacturing service. The phone may hit the market in the second half of 2013. Recent iPhone models have had glass exteriors, while the iPhone 5 sports a metallic chassis.

My view: Plastic signifies cheap (a product that lacks the quality), and i don’t think Apple is one to go the cheap route, more likely Apple would find other ways to keep costs down. Plus, manufacturing a phone in the United States would be more expensive than making it in China.

Apple needs to overhaul its supply chain to meet demand for cheaper smartphones in emerging markets, Ex-Apple CEO John Sculley said.  As the market for handsets including Apple’s iPhone gets saturated in developed regions such as the U.S. and Europe, the company will increasingly depend on growth in emerging markets, including India, Sculley said today in a Bloomberg Television interview.

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