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Apple plotting iPhone sales overhaul, report says

The fruit-flavored firm is said to be queuing up new incentives for in-store shoppers.

Luke Westaway Senior editor
Luke Westaway is a senior editor at CNET and writer/ presenter of Adventures in Tech, a thrilling gadget show produced in our London office. Luke's focus is on keeping you in the loop with a mix of video, features, expert opinion and analysis.
Luke Westaway
New customers check out the options at Apple's store in Paris.
New customers check out the options at Apple's store in Paris. Stephen Shankland/CNET

Apple is said to be plotting new incentives and schemes to persuade shoppers to buy the iPhone in-store.

Head honcho Tim Cook imparted some of the new measures -- which could include more price-matching and trade-in options -- at a chinwag with Apple's retail chiefs, 9to5Mac reports, citing "multiple people familiar with the internal event."

The move apparently comes in a bid to fight competition from Android smartphones. While Cook is supposedly happy with sales figures for Mac and iPad devices, he wants more customers to buy iPhones from inside Apple shops, so that they get a gander at the other glossy gadgets Apple offers.

The move could have some positive consequences for shoppers. The possibility of a previously rumored trade-in scheme is mentioned once more, for example. This retail ploy would likely see you getting a discount on your next iPhone when you trade in an older model.

The program could also let you upgrade a damaged, older iPhone to a refurbished iPhone 5, the report says, with price-matching programs for international stores also tipped.

Hands-on with the sharp, slim iPhone 5 (pictures)

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Would you buy an iPhone from an Apple Store, or would you rather hunt around for a better deal online? Let me know in the comments, and find out about the history of Apple's smart phone in our handy video below.

Watch this: Apple iPhone evolution