I don't get the point of the 5c beyond marketing. It's almost identical to the iPhone 5 and the exact same price it would have dropped to had the 5 not been discontinued.
You pretty much just answered it. It's the same price as the iPhone 5 would have been, but it's cheaper to make. Profit. Not to mention all that colour stuff actually worked wonders for the old iPod lines, maybe it'll catch on again.
