Enacom interventor, Juan Martin Ozores, warned Convergencia about this and considered: “The lack of affordability of devices is the great obstacle to the digital divide that we have in the country.” Due to the concern that this generates in the regulator, a report was requested from the GSMA, which corresponds to November 2024 and is entitled “Prices of 5G smartphones in Argentina.”
According to the survey, which Convergencia had access to, around 30% of Argentines live in areas with 4G coverage or more, but do not have access to mobile Internet. “The lack of affordability, mainly of devices, is one of the reasons that explains this gap in use or demand,” warns the GSMA.
In a price comparison, it is shown that in Argentina the iPhone 15 256 GB model costs US$ 3,422, while in Ecuador it is US$ 1,275; in Mexico, US$ 998; and in Brazil, US$ 950, for example. The Samsung Galaxy A55 256GB device costs US$ 978 in Argentina, compared to US$ 613 in Ecuador; US$ 499 in Mexico; and US$ 363 in Brazil.