Well, the price isn’t at flagship level. At least not from Apple’s view. You pay less, you get less (which is still en par if not ahead in most regards, compared to the competition)
Simple anchoring effect at work. Price flagship higher, so expensive “cheap” option looks cheaper by comparison. Truth of the matter is, it’s all inflated prices, not only exclusive to Apple.
I mean, yea, obviously. Adjusted for inflation, the iPhone 15 without contract costs about as much as the iPhone 4 (it’s technically even $40 cheaper). The Pro models are much more expensive, of course, which was a bit less questionable, when pro and non pro shared the same chip. Now, the non pro is a generation behind… At least imo though, there’s not much reason to spend the extra on the Pro, at least not as an average user, especially since, performance wise, last years chip still outperforms the competition. But then again, I myself barely classify as average user since I’m a proud user of the 13 mini…
