Cheap iphone, really not cheap.(features & pics)

Apple has a few tricks planned for 2013 to keep smartphone rival Samsung and its increasingly popular Galaxy series from stealing all of the spotlight this year. Along with updates to its popular tablet and mini tablet series [iPad 5 and iPad Mini 2], Apple is expected to release a brand new installment to its flagship smartphone family, the iPhone 5S. Rumor has it, Apple is also planning to release a low cost alternative to the current iPhone to edge out Android developers, like Samsung, in low-end markets.

However, Pegatron CEO TH Tung confirmed to investors releasing a less expensive than full-strength iPhone will not come "cheap." Not much has been confirmed in terms of specs for the iPhone Mini, or iPhone Nano, but here's what we believe:

  - the low cost iPhone Mini/Nano will have a plastic case, available in several colors.
- have a design reminiscent of the current iPhone.
- come with a 4.8-inch screen
Without contract the iPhone Mini is expected to cost around ₦56,489.34-64,559.24, while the current iPhone 5 cost around ₦96,838.87.
"We think Apple will have to launch an 'iPhone Mini' at some point over the next three years to address the hundreds of millions of prepaid users worldwide that cannot afford the current iPhone," according to Neil Mawston of Strategy Analytics.
The low cost iPhone Mini is expected to released along with the new iPhone 5S sometime this year, either in Q3 or Q4. Most rumors point to a September launch for all new Apple devices. Though a 2013 release is most likely, Apple could easily push back to 2014 to make sure the updates are worthwhile.

iPHONE 5S RELEASE DATE

Open a calendar to any autumn month, then throw a dart at it: whatever date you hit, you've got as much chance of getting the official launch date correct as some of the so called experts. For example, a recent rumour suggested that the iPhone 5S would launch on 20th September. This date was based on the fact that iOS 6 was released 100 days after the OS was unveiled; add 100 days on to the iOS 7 reveal and you get the 18th September. Given that new hardware arrives with a new operating system, and Apple releases hardware on a Friday, that would give us a 20th September launch. That's all well and good, but it's important to remember that iOS 5 was announced on the 6th June 2011, but it wasn't actually released until 12th October 2011. In other words, Apple doesn't have a specific pattern and it will release products when it's ready.
That doesn't mean that late September is out of the question, as an autumn launch seems the most likely. This follows information hinted at by Tim Cook in Apple's earnings call. In the call, Cook suggested that Apple won't launch new products until Autumn.
"Our teams are hard at work on some amazing new hardware, software, and services that we can’t wait to introduce this fall and throughout 2014," said Cook.
While Cook may have said that there's nothing new until September, it doesn't mean that it's necessarily Apple's choice, with rumours of delays. We're not sure that Apple can afford a delay in its next product and it's likely to do everything it can to meet earlier deadlines. A recent report on The Wall Street Journal states that Foxconn is dramatically increasing staff in order to start work on the iPhone 5S