Apple scales back on iPhone 5C orders

CUPERTINO, Calif., Oct. 16 (UPI) -- U.S. technology giant Apple Inc. is scaling back on orders for the iPhone 5C, the new, cheaper version of the iPhone, sources told The Wall Street Journal.

The iPhone 5C was launched in September, but stores quickly dropped prices as demand was slow, ABC News reported Wednesday.

Walmart was one of several retailers that dropped prices for the phone that was intended to extend Apple's market as a more affordable option than the standard iPhone 5S, which was launched on the same day.

Apple has said it sold 9 million phones on the weekend of the launch. But the company has not broken down sales data for the public.

The iPhone 5C was made to match the capacities of the iPhone 5, which is to say it lacked the upgraded camera and the fingerprint security system that the iPhone 5S featured.

The cheaper version also came with plastic backs in a variety of colors, while the top shelf iPhone 5S came in only three colors and had the traditional metal iPhone back.

It may turn out to be a lesson learned for Apple.

The company has told several supplier and assembly companies that it had planned to cut orders for the iPhone 5C. A Taiwanese assembly company Pegatron is having orders cut by 20 percent, while another, Hon Hai, is facing production order cuts of about 33 percent.

A component supplier was told to expect a 50 percent reduction in orders. Apple, however, declined to comment on the shift, ABC News said.