Unlocked iPhone 4 Now Sold in the U.S.; Customers Still Stuck on AT&T

[rohitbaran]

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+1

 

[dejasxt]

Try buying any smart phone without the contract. It will be at least 500. I dont know why you guys are complaining about the prices.

 

[Guest]

I don't think you US peeps get the idea with buying handsets *separately* from contracts.
(Although, I do feel you're pain on the lack of carrier options making the reasoning for buying handset separate from contract largely pointless in your market.)

In the UK, we have had handset sales separate from contracts as an option for a few years now (as well as PAYG [pay as you go] too, but I'll skip that for the moment as it's slightly different!).

The idea is that you pay upfront for a handset you then own outright, and then buy the services you want from the carrier you want on top at a *lower* per month price.

For example...
iP4 32GB = £600 (yes that's POUNDS = US$900! You still complaining over there?)
[different economy — you have to pay your own medical/s.security, whereas we have 20% VAT (+ circa 10% duties, as an extra govmt levy for the manufacturer) included in that price, hence our economy is more "social" shall we say ]

Then you buy contract separately: eg. reasonably cheap, just £20/mth for 600mins/unlimited texts/500MB data (extra 500MB data blocks for fairly reasonable £5 increments).

Therefore the TCO (total cost of ownership) over 24 mths:
600 (phone) + 480 (contract) = 1080. Over 24 mths = £45/mth.
The same deal on a subsidised contract, like you typically get in the US, is either the SAME or MORE.

*BUT* there are additional benefits:
(1) If you are unhappy with your carrier, and your on a rolling 30-day contract you can move carrier at any time. (or lock-in for 12mths and save £5/mth.)
(2) *At any time* if you fancy getting the newer model/a different phone entirely, as they are UNLOCKED, you can just sell old one and buy a newer one.
(3) Travel sim swap-outs, when abroad are easy.
(4) As the handset is unlocked, you can sell the handset to *anybody* on any GSM network in the world (GSM is most of the world), and not just those on the same carrier as you = higher price!
(5) Selling (especially Apple's iPhones!), you get 50-60% of your money back on resale in the secondhand market, so only have to add the extra 30-40% to get the new one.

Hence why me likey ;-) !
(+ the brands like Apple like it, as the new model can get more sales to current customers, as well as new ones, while older 2nd-hand phones can hook the poorer peeps onto their brand [or should I say the Apple "closed platform ecosystem", lol] as a bonus!)

 

[alidan]

[citation][nom]dejasxt[/nom]Try buying any smart phone without the contract. It will be at least 500. I dont know why you guys are complaining about the prices.[/citation]

because, broken down, all the hardware, and labor put into the phone costs only about 200$
they are making 450-550$ every phone sold. that is obscenely overpriced.

 

[alidan]

[citation][nom]soldier37[/nom]99% of you whining about this either don't have $700 to spend or never had at&t for service or both. Go away and comment on something you know about elsewhere idiots.[/citation]

i have 14000$ burrining a hole in my pocket right now, and i had at&t
at&t made me want to kill, and an i phone is more trouble than its worth.

 

[dejasxt]

[citation][nom]alidan[/nom]because, broken down, all the hardware, and labor put into the phone costs only about 200$they are making 450-550$ every phone sold. that is obscenely overpriced.[/citation]

Nothing is free and everyone is trying to make a living. Of course apple is going to make a profit of their products. Apple is not a charity nor a nonprofit organization. Have you count in all costs of marketing, ideas, designs, and many more? Besides all other smart phone companies are probably around the same profit margin as the apple.

 

[proton9]

^isheep

 

[hok]

750 is actually "cheap" compared to other markets where they sell it straight out...

 

[dejasxt]

[citation][nom]proton9[/nom]^isheep[/citation]

not really. only like some apple products. even so, i wont be sorry for loving good designs like how i wont be sorry for loving good lucking ladies.

 

[fir_ser]

@xbeater:
Is this Steve Jobs?