Apple opened its first store in Brazil over the weekend — with around 1,700 impatient South American Apple lining up to be the first through the doors.
The Apple Store, located in Rio de Janeiro, holds the (dubious) distinction of offering the highest priced iPhone 5s currently available on the market. The 16-gigabyte, contract-free model is selling for 2,799 Brazilian reals — a figure that translates as $1,174.
To put that in perspective, compare it with $649 in the U.S., $872 in China, or $996 in Italy.
Not all of this money goes to Apple, of course. While the exact breakdown is unknown, a sizable portion of driven by taxes and other tariffs. As one Cult of Mac reader points out, Brazil applies a 60 percent flat import tax on most manufactured retail goods.
A recent infographic showing how much the cost of iPhones varies around the world can be seen here. With such variation existing between markets, it’s no wonder that the iPhone has become a currency in many places.
Brazil marks the 15th country where Apple operates its own stores. It is also one of the top 10 smartphone markets in the world, with a reported 50 million users at the end of 2013.
Source: Bloomberg
