过去一年中，苹果公司（Apple）可能推出一款低价手机的传闻在坊间传得纷纷扬扬。据称，部分市场认为高端iPhone定价过于高昂，而这款低价手机正是瞄准这类市场。

    上周四，特雷弗•谢里丹——这位作者的历史记录我们难以担保——在苹果产品最新资讯网站Apple'N'Apps上撰文，描绘了一种似乎可信的情景。

    他引述三位不具名的“独立知情人士”的话，宣称苹果公司今年秋天将发布两款iPhone：1) 已经被连篇累牍大书特书的iPhone 5；2) 价格较低，在苹果公司内部被称为iCloud iPhone的手机。

    “iPhone 5将是高质量的升级版，但这场新机上市大戏的主角将是更便宜的iCloud iPhone。苹果公司想推出一台价格低廉的iPhone，同时仍然维持其行业领先的利润率水平。据我们的知情人士透露，苹果公司打算采用容量更小的闪存来实现这一目标，而这种闪存本身也在跌价。电子制造领域领先市场研究公司iSuppli对iPhone 4零部件的成本分析显示，存储部件占到总制造成本的15%，对3G版来说也是如此。在上百万台手机上降低15%的成本将省下巨额开支。iCloud iPhone是专为十分希望采用苹果云服务（iCloud）进行存储的用户打造的机型，这样他们就能大幅减少直接存储在iPhone上的内容。此举不仅有助于苹果公司将苹果云服务打造成一大特色服务，还为完全采用苹果数字媒体环境（Apple ecosystem）找到了理由。”

    据谢里丹称，苹果公司的目标定价是400美元，比无补贴的iPhone 4便宜约200美元。假如运营商按惯例提供补贴，对消费者来说，这款手机的初始购机成本将降为零。

    译者：清远

    There's been much speculation over the past year about the possibility of Apple (AAPL) shipping a lower-cost phone to compete in markets where the top-of-the-line iPhones have proved too expensive.

    Writing in Apple'N'Apps Thursday, Trevor Sheridan -- a writer whose track record we can't vouch for -- offers what nonetheless seems like a plausible scenario.

    Citing three unnamed "independent sources," he claims that Apple is set to launch two iPhones this fall: 1) The iPhone 5 about which so much has already been written. And 2) a cheaper device known within Apple as the iCloud iPhone.

    "The iPhone 5 will be a quality upgrade, but the star of the show will be the cheaper iCloud iPhone alternative. Apple wants to offer a lower priced iPhone while still maintaining their industry leading profit margins. According to our sources, Apple is going to do this by using less on board Flash memory which are also falling in price. When looking at the iSuppli cost breakdown of the parts of the iPhone 4, the storage accounts for 15% of the cost to build the device, and that's true for the 3GS as well. Reducing 15% of the cost across millions of units is a substantial savings. The iCloud model will be for users who will want to use the iCloud heavily for storage, and keep a lot less on the iPhone itself. This will also help Apple make iCloud a feature by itself and reason to use the entire Apple ecosystem."

    According to Sheridan, Apple is aiming for a $400 price point, about $200 less than the unsubsidized cost of the iPhone 4. Assuming carriers offer their usual subsidies, that could bring the initial cost to consumers to $0.00.