Apple iPhone 5s offers on Valentine’s Day: Is this deal worth it?

Apple is advertising the iPhone 5s as the ultimate gift on Valentine's Day, but should you fall for this deal? 

Valentine’s Day is this Tuesday – and many of you may be thinking to gift either the iPhone 7 or the iPhone 7 Plus. But, Apple thinks the best gift this Valentine’s Day is the iPhone 5s. Well, don’t be surprised to see to the full page ad in one of the leading news dailies this morning, where the centre of attraction is the now-dated iPhone 5s.

So, what’s the deal? Apple has partnered with HDFC Bank to provide cashback offers on purchase of the iPhone 5s. The company is offering a cashback of up to Rs 6,000. The special offer is valid on all HDFC Bank Debit and Credit cards. According to the terms and conditions, the cashback will be credited to a customer’s accounts within 90 days of the purchase. The offer is live and will be valid till February 14, 2017.
The important point to note is that a cashback of Rs 2,000 is also applicable on all Debit and Credit cards from various banks. The following banks are: American Express, Axis Bank, Citi bank, HSBC, ICICI, Indusind Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, RBL Bank, Standard Charted, SBI cards, Union Bank and Yes Bank. Users should note the Rs 2,000 cashback is not valid on Debit Cards of American Express, SBI and Union Bank. Financing offers are available from Bajaj Finance and Capital First.
The iPhone 5s is the cheapest model and thus, it’s going to be a tempting deal. For Rs 18,994, you’re getting the iPhone, not any smartphone. But it’s far from perfect. Here are some of the reasons why you should avoid getting the iPhone 5s right now.
First and foremost, the 16GB iPhone 5s doesn’t make sense, given the little space you are getting. Apps, games movies, photos and videos will mean you’ll run out of space pretty soon. Since Apple doesn’t allow users to expand the internal memory, it’s going to be a big problem.
Plus given the iPhone 5s is a three year old phone, you might not be upgraded to iOS 11, which Apple plans to release in the coming months. Being a new owner of the iPhone 5s, missing out on the new OS won’t be such good news.  The iPhone 5s was launched nearly four years back (September 2013 to be precise), so it looks a bit dated. Basically, you’ll be paying for the brand and most importantly, for a phone that is already obsolete.
Butt if you’ve been dreaming of getting an iPhone for less than Rs 20,000, then the iPhone 5s is a good bet. The plus point with Apple devices: even when they are outdated, they continue to work just as well. Don’t expect performance to be an issue on the iPhone 5s. The 8MP camera on the iPhone 5s is also one of the better cameras in this price range. Also if you plan to upgrade to a new phone in the coming months, the iPhone will fetch a higher price on the exchange rate.
But if you are willing to shell out Rs 20,000 for a new phone which you wish to gift to your loved one, you can consider a number of options, many of which sport much better specifications. For example, Lenovo Z2 Plus is a great smartphone, with a Snapdragon 820 processor, 4GB RAM, a Full HD display and superior battery life. The phone runs on Android, and is priced at Rs 17,499. The Samsung Galaxy A5 (2016) is another notable option in the similar price bracket.
An iPhone might seem like the ultimate gift to flaunt on Valentine’s Day, but an iPhone 5s is a little dated. If you’re on a tight budget, and Apple is all you wish to give, then you can take it, especially if you’re getting the Rs 6000 cashback. But otherwise, the market does have a lot of other options in this price range, which you can consider for gifting.