Costco to Sell iPhones for $149 in January?

[MacRumors]

http://www.macrumors.com/images/macrumorsthreadlogo.gif (http://www.macrumors.com/2008/11/11/costco-to-sell-iphones-for-149-in-january/)

Amidst rumors (http://blogs.barrons.com/techtraderdaily/2008/11/10/trippin-with-trip-one-mans-view-of-carnage-to-come/) of doom and gloom for the tech market, analyst Trip Chowdhry claims that Apple will start selling iPhones at Costco (http://www.costco.com/) for $149 starting in January.

The tone of the rest of the report indicates that the tech market is scaling back considerably due to the global economic downturn.

Article Link: Costco to Sell iPhones for $149 in January? (http://www.macrumors.com/2008/11/11/costco-to-sell-iphones-for-149-in-january/)

[dubhe]

With a contract or Pre Pay?

[nozebleed]

So would these then be unlocked?

[matthewHUB]

sounds too good to be true. but if it is - great! would they be available from the online store costco.com?

[BLACK MAC]

I doubt they will sell it for that cheap. But anything is possible.

[SFStateStudent]

+1 ^^^ $199 & $299 just like the rest of them...

[kornyboy]

Wirelessly posted (iPhone: Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 2_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/525.18.1 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/3.1.1 Mobile/5F136 Safari/525.20)

How will they be able to do this? Will they be able to subsidize them some how? I don't see how they will make any money doing this.

[Rybold]

$199 & $299 just like the rest of them...

I agree. The price WILL be the same as the others. Otherwise, other retailers would be crying unfair advantage and there would be lawsuits against Apple.

$199 and $299.

[NeoMayhem]

You can already get a few ATT phones at costco for $50 less then other stores, and get the activation fee waived.

I would not be surprised at all to see a $149 and $244 iPhone at costco with a 2 year contract, and no activation fee. It would be locked of course, just like the ones you get at best buy or any other authorized reseller.

[longofest]

You could feasibly see a difference of $5 or $10 ($194 or $189), but not that much.

[nigrunze]

If they bump it down to $149, it'll probably require a 3 year contract. Now Americans can experience what cell phone plans are like in Canada (and any other country with 3 year contracts and a minimum of $5 for call display or voicemail.

..... On second thought, that's probably not going to happen. What's more likely is that they'll bump the 8GB iPhone to $149 USD, 16GB iPhone to $249 USD and add a new 32GB model at $349 USD. Remember at the beginning of this year the iPhone got bumped to 16GB in around the same timeframe. I'm pretty sure it was in the first week of February, and most of the time when Apple specifies a month that they'll have a product ready, it's usually in the last week.... or the month after.

[Chupa Chupa]

Could be true assuming Apple bumps up the memory at MW to 16 and 32GB and lets Costco sell the old 8GB.

[aneftp]

Very simple:

Apple will reduce the subsidized (2 year contract) 8GB iphone price from $199 to $149.99 in January. The current iphone 3g will have been on sale for 6 months by January so a $50 price reduction for a subsidized iphone sounds right.

[bacaramac]

If they bump it down to $149, it'll probably require a 3 year contract. Now Americans can experience what cell phone plans are like in Canada (and any other country with 3 year contracts and a minimum of $5 for call display or voicemail.

..... On second thought, that's probably not going to happen. What's more likely is that they'll bump the 8GB iPhone to $149 USD, 16GB iPhone to $249 USD and add a new 32GB model at $349 USD. Remember at the beginning of this year the iPhone got bumped to 16GB in around the same timeframe. I'm pretty sure it was in the first week of February, and most of the time when Apple specifies a month that they'll have a product ready, it's usually in the last week.... or the month after.

I agree with your second statement. Bump memory and offer current two models at $50 less as well as adding a new version. They did say Apple is making more money now that memory is down in cost.

[saving107]

funny thing is that I work inside costco (im not a costco employee, im just a full time vendor who works inside costco) in san jose, ca and I am very good friends with the manager at the Wireless kiosk and I have been checking the warehouse system and he has checked in his system and there have been no signs of an iphone coming soon, so I went ahead a finally bought the 3g again on saturday.

if its going to be like the G1, no one will know until 2-3 weeks before its released, at costco merchandise comes and goes so fast most employees dont know what coming next or dont care anymore.... but it was cool that the kiosk manager had a working G1 2 weeks in advance that google gave him for personal use.

[nigrunze]

They did say Apple is making more money now that memory is down in cost.

I can't remember the last time that Apple sold something at a loss. Normally, it's Apple who decides the specs for their devices and nobody else. While they may give the iPhone a slight price drop, I don't think it will be anything major.

[puckhead193]

bad move apple. When I think of the iphone i think of it as an exclusive product like a burberry jacket or a lexus/BMW. I think the more people who have it, the less exclusive it becomes. By lowering it will be just another honda or kia.

[Sayer]

These iPhone are subsidized, that is AT&T (and other carriers) pays Apple a fee for each phone sold and on their network.

This is why you have to sign a 1-2 year contract. AT&T gets you locked (to collect subscriber fees for 1-2 years) to justify paying the fee to Apple, and if you opt out early you essentially pay the subsidized fee equivalent to cancel the contract.

If Apple sold unlocked iPhones they'd be the full price e.g. $500-$600.

People bitch and moan, but that is the purpose of a free market capitalist system, sellers find a way to get buyers to spend their money in an acceptable exchange.

Now imagine if Apple sold an iMac for $200 as long as you used the mobileMe internet (full DSL/cable/WiMax) service for two years. That would be awesome.

[lowbatteries]

bad move apple. When I think of the iphone i think of it as an exclusive product like a burberry jacket or a lexus/BMW. I think the more people who have it, the less exclusive it becomes. By lowering it will be just another honda or kia.

Those products are only exclusive because they are expensive. And they are expensive because they are high quality.

Exclusivity is a side effect of quality, not a requirement. If the iPhone gets less expensive, that's a good thing, as long as quality doesn't suffer.

However, if Apple wants to keep their iPhone hip, they'll keep it out of Costco, Wal-mart, and 7-11.

[Mykbibby]

bad move apple. When I think of the iphone i think of it as an exclusive product like a burberry jacket or a lexus/BMW. I think the more people who have it, the less exclusive it becomes. By lowering it will be just another honda or kia.

Obviously lowering it to 199 was smart... they outsold RIM and their previous year in a quarter! Any lower will help dramatically.

However, I've been annoyed with the quality of the phone. The old phone was built so much better. I want aluminum again. Add the black thing on the bottom for the antenna, but don't make the whole thing plastic... its a piece of junk.

That being said, its still the best phone in the world. The build quality could be so much better though, especially after seeing the new iPod Nano. I want aluminum laser iPhone!

[citi]

I agree. The price WILL be the same as the others. Otherwise, other retailers would be crying unfair advantage and there would be lawsuits against Apple.

$199 and $299.


uhhh... what other retailers would be suing apple? AT&T? they make money off of the subscription, and in fact would probably make more money if they didn't have to be responsible for the unit. Best Buy? I'm sure they could sell it for the same price as costco but wouldn't want to cut into their own profits.


Costco doesn't care about the iphone...they just want people in the store.

[Chupa Chupa]

bad move apple. When I think of the iphone i think of it as an exclusive product like a burberry jacket or a lexus/BMW. I think the more people who have it, the less exclusive it becomes. By lowering it will be just another honda or kia.


You think the iPhone is exclusive? Really? Maybe back at the original launch, but they are almost as common as blackberrys now. The iPhone is a monster product for what it does, not because of snob appeal. Actually you could say the same for BMW (drives like no other mass produced car) and Lexus (Inspector Gadget on Wheels). Neither brand is exclusive, except for the flagship model, they are just respected for what they represent. Now Rolls Royce, Lambro, Ferrari, that is exclusive territory. (I say this as a happy BMW and iPhone owner).

[veeco3110]

as I've posted many times, Im a supervisor at costco and I'm posting this at work right now((shhh don't tell the warehouse manager)) but I'm looking forward up until June 09 and nothing is coming up. I mean granted they don't have anything in the system. But the warehouse manager doesn't know of anything, our district manager doesn't know of anything, and the cell phone kiosk manager hasn't heard anything...take it for what it's worth

[veeco3110]

You think the iPhone is exclusive? Really? Maybe back at the original launch, but they are almost as common as blackberrys now. The iPhone is a monster product for what it does, not because of snob appeal. Actually you could say the same for BMW (drives like no other mass produced car) and Lexus (Inspector Gadget on Wheels). Neither brand is exclusive, except for the flagship model, they are just respected for what they represent. Now Rolls Royce, Lambro, Ferrari, that is exclusive territory. (I say this as a happy BMW and iPhone owner).



It's lambo

[oldwatery]

I just don't see this happening.
What they gonna do....put an AT&T kiosk in every Costco?
Right now the one we have locally is Verizon I think, but for sure not AT&T.
I can believe the price reduction though as I was buying my 16GB the other day I thought about MW2009 and the probable intro of a 32GB at the same price :(

[IJ Reilly]

These are predictions, based on nothing but one person's ideas. They don't even rise to the level of rumor.

[iParis]

This is going to make me want one even more, if only they were unlocked.
WOW, let's see how much this messes up iPod touch sales. :rolleyes:
If this happens they better lower the 16GB to $200 and the 32GB to $300 while adding a 64GB at $400.

[citi]

This is going to make me want one even more, if only they were unlocked.
WOW, let's see how much this messes up iPod touch sales. :rolleyes:
If this happens they better lower the 16GB to $200 and the 32GB to $300 while adding a 64GB at $400.

It's not going to mess up touch sales. People don't buy a touch because the iphone is cheaper. Most people are smart enough to see that they have to pay a high monthly fee to keep the iphone. People buy a touch because the don't want AT&T or don't want a cell phone. Maybe some people just want a cool ipod.

[saving107]

I just don't see this happening.
What they gonna do....put an AT&T kiosk in every Costco?
Right now the one we have locally is Verizon I think, but for sure not AT&T.
I can believe the price reduction though as I was buying my 16GB the other day I thought about MW2009 and the probable intro of a 32GB at the same price :(

verizon, t-mobile and AT&T

[plumbingandtech]

So would these then be unlocked?

Why in the world would someone think they would be unlocked?

:rolleyes:

Please see the part where ATT has an exclusive contract with Apple.

[kubes]

I just don't see this happening.
What they gonna do....put an AT&T kiosk in every Costco?

I'm not sure how it works in the States, but every Costco I've been to in Canada has a cell phone kiosk that offers plans from all the major providers. It wouldn't be that strange...in fact, they already sell the iPhone at my local Costco warehouse.

[lostngone]

How about letting Apple Authorized Resellers sell the iPhone!

[oldwatery]

verizon, t-mobile and AT&T

I stand corrected.
In which case this could happen.

[NeoMayhem]

Those products are only exclusive because they are expensive. And they are expensive because they are high quality.

Exclusivity is a side effect of quality, not a requirement. If the iPhone gets less expensive, that's a good thing, as long as quality doesn't suffer.

However, if Apple wants to keep their iPhone hip, they'll keep it out of Costco, Wal-mart, and 7-11.

They already sell it at best buy, how much worse can it get?

[iParis]

They already sell it at best buy, how much worse can it get?

Uhh... duh.
Best Buy is also just about the only place they sell Macs.
Not much of a surprise.:rolleyes:
Name an electronics store better than Best Buy, other than the Apple Store that is.

[emaja]

Too good to be true = to good to be true.

Not gonna happen.

[Pigumon]

When I was looking for cheap LCD TV's for a museum, I wandered into Costco and checked them out. They sell previous models that are being blown out by companies.

If you see the Canon Rebel XSi Digital SLR, it's the older 10MP model, not the current 12MP model. THis is how they can sell them lower than other store, they're not the same models as the other stores (also some models are made specifically for Costco, but that's different).

So yeah, I could see the current iPhone being sold there if Apple releases a newer version soon.

Also, the kiosk at my Costco has 3 carriers, including AT&T i think.

[Rybold]

uhhh... what other retailers would be suing apple? AT&T? they make money off of the subscription, and in fact would probably make more money if they didn't have to be responsible for the unit. Best Buy? I'm sure they could sell it for the same price as costco but wouldn't want to cut into their own profits.


Costco doesn't care about the iphone...they just want people in the store.

okay. I agree.

[boer]

Amidst rumors (http://blogs.barrons.com/techtraderdaily/2008/11/10/trippin-with-trip-one-mans-view-of-carnage-to-come/) of doom and gloom for the tech market, analyst Trip Chowdhry claims that Apple will start selling iPhones at Costco (http://www.costco.com/) for $149 starting in January.


Highly unlikely! First of all, didn't we just read the other day that iPhone is officially number one in US consumer smartphone market right now. Secondly, these type of rumors are very bad for end of year sales (the largest retail season!). There is no way Apple would risk holiday sales by planning ahead something like this.

The article is pure speculation and one can only guess the motives behind it.

[lostngone]

Uhh... duh.
Best Buy is also just about the only place they sell Macs.
Not much of a surprise.:rolleyes:
Name an electronics store better than Best Buy, other than the Apple Store that is.

WRONG!

You do realize long before the "Apple Store" and the Internet, Apple sold its products all over the World through places called the "Authorized Apple Reseller". Even today some people still don't have an "Apple Store" within 800 miles of them but yet they have local shops/stores that you can go to and try out new Apple computers/hardware, get training/advice and even have warranty work done, yet for some reason Apple still will not let them sell the iPhone.

It is total BS! These people were the ones selling and servicing Apple Computers back when no one else would and Apple is just pissing all over them by letting companies like Best Buy and Cosco sell them.

EDIT: To answer your question about naming an electronics store better than Best Buy...

Thats simple... Any store that ISN'T a Best Buy.

[Shasterball]

If they bump it down to $149, it'll probably require a 3 year contract. Now Americans can experience what cell phone plans are like in Canada (and any other country with 3 year contracts and a minimum of $5 for call display or voicemail.

Ummmm, no. I doubt we will move completely to that side of the coin. Although we are starting to pay a hell of a lot for some things: e.g., "3G" vs "EDGE" for texting? Ridiculous. :rolleyes:

[iParis]

WRONG!

You do realize long before the "Apple Store" and the Internet, Apple sold its products all over the World through places called the "Authorized Apple Reseller". Even today some people still don't have an "Apple Store" within 800 miles of them but yet they have local shops/stores that you can go to and try out new Apple computers/hardware, get training/advice and even have warranty work done, yet for some reason Apple still will not let them sell the iPhone.

It is total BS! These people were the ones selling and servicing Apple Computers back when no one else would and Apple is just pissing all over them by letting companies like Best Buy and Cosco sell them.

EDIT: To answer your question about naming an electronics store better than Best Buy...

Thats simple... Any store that ISN'T a Best Buy.

Ok, I meant an Apple reseller other than iPods. Obviously there are many stores that sell Apple products, the majority of them only sell iPods and no orther Apple products. For example, Wal Mart and Target.

And why do you dislike Best Buy so much?

[mpshay]

bad move apple. When I think of the iphone i think of it as an exclusive product like a burberry jacket or a lexus/BMW. I think the more people who have it, the less exclusive it becomes. By lowering it will be just another honda or kia.

Exclusive? It just passed the RAZR as the highest selling phone. Hard to claim exclusivity when you are number 1 in terms of sales.

[lftrghtparadigm]

Who cares?


They could sell it out of bins at KMart for $29.95, it makes no difference, you still need to qualify for a contract and shell out a minimum of $75 a month (average $80-$90 a month). Daunting monthly bill for anyone, even if you can afford the initial cost.

[IJ Reilly]

They could sell it out of bins at KMart for $29.95, it makes no difference, you still need to qualify for a contract and shell out a minimum of $75 a month (average $80-$90 a month). Daunting monthly bill for anyone, even if you can afford the initial cost.

Exactly. If Apple wanted to sell more iPhones they could do this pushing them through the existing channels, with an incentive such offering a $50 rebate or some other similar, common gimmick. But how many more iPhones would that sell? Not many, because the real cost of ownership is the contract. This analyst is simply guessing that because the iPhone is a very popular gadget, that Apple will be stuck with excess inventory during the economic slowdown and will need to dump product quickly. And where do excess inventory dumps often take place? Costco. That is the total substance of this prediction. IOW, no substance at all -- and little logic.

[twoodcc]

i would be very surprised to see them sell it for that price. anything is possible, and i hope that they do sell it for that. but i'll believe it when it happens

[mrgreen4242]

I just want an iPhone that I can use the internal BT to tether to my existing cell phone/cell plan. Use the iPhone as a wireless BT handset and connect to the internet using the existing phone as a modem. I pay $30 per month for all the minutes I need and unlimited data/texting. Why would I want an iPhone (which means spending 3x that amount monthly)?

Once someone figures out how to unlock the BT in the iPhone for that I'll go buy one (without a plan, of course). Until then, well, <shrug>.

[iMetalG5]

I own an Alpina BMW and to me that is special. iPhone is not exclusive at all. I can't count the number of people that own one. Almost everyone I know.

[funnyent]

i don't think this is going to happen. I mean, you can buy them online and in an AT&T store, but AT&T want to activate it. So will they have an AT&T store in Costco? Probably not.

[JNB]

i don't think this is going to happen. I mean, you can buy them online and in an AT&T store, but AT&T want to activate it. So will they have an AT&T store in Costco? Probably not.

They already do. Multiple carriers, actually.


And for all the naysayers basing commentary on their impression of Costco in relation to other retailers (as opposed to Apple's product plan), you apparently don't know much of how they do business. Their traditional model allows for a 12% or 18% markup from cost, depending on whether it's a house or name brand. That's it. Depending on the wholesale cost of an iPhone, that would dictate most pricing decisions, not Apple's decision. If Apple decided to use Costco as a channel, they already would know this, regardless of the MAP.

Not to prognosticate as to whether this is likely or even possible, but that's the way they work.

[JoeG4]

. I pay $30 per month for all the minutes I need and unlimited data/texting.

Please tell me what service plan and with what company! I'm just dying to know, because I'd LOOOOOVE that :D

[askthedust]

Those products are only exclusive because they are expensive. And they are expensive because they are high quality.

Exclusivity is a side effect of quality, not a requirement. If the iPhone gets less expensive, that's a good thing, as long as quality doesn't suffer.

However, if Apple wants to keep their iPhone hip, they'll keep it out of Costco, Wal-mart, and 7-11.

I agree with the price quality statement.

On the hip tip though, that sounds right until you see all the ipods already at wal-mart, sam's club...

I remember seeing the umbrella statement by Jobs and wondering if the 8GB model will eventually become the "shuffle" version. The lowest priced whose specs hardly change but entice you to try it out and then upgrade down the road as you get "locked in" to the ecosystem.

But for me it's a nicer ecosystem to be in...

[skye12]

I'd expect the price to drop everywhere by January as the recession
intensifies. The real cost of the iphone are the monthly charges, not a
few bucks upfront for the iphone. Keep in mind you could buy a new macbook
every year for the cost of an iphone.

My hope and expectation is that Apple will start selling a new cheaper
version of the iphone with the touchscreen. I'd jump all over one that could
do everything but the internet access.

[Shagrat]

Woder how that squares with this (http://arstechnica.com/journals/apple.ars/2008/11/11/apple-following-iphone-production-cut-with-notebook-cuts)
...iphone and Laptop prodcution cuts...

[NeoMayhem]

Please tell me what service plan and with what company! I'm just dying to know, because I'd LOOOOOVE that :D

Sprint SERO is pretty similar to that. A pretty good deal if you dont mind having crappy phones.

[pbateman]

Has anyone heard anything new about this yet? i asked towards the end of dec the guys in the phone kiosk at my local Costco and they told me they "couldn't comment" on that?
Reason is I am thinking of getting an iphone, obviously would be great if Costco sold it at a discount (since im in the middle of a contract with ATT and I'd probably have to buy at full price) but regardless, I get a yearly Costco coupon that I could definitely use towards it....if they carried it....

[iParis]

Has anyone heard anything new about this yet? i asked towards the end of dec the guys in the phone kiosk at my local Costco and they told me they "couldn't comment" on that?
Reason is I am thinking of getting an iphone, obviously would be great if Costco sold it at a discount (since im in the middle of a contract with ATT and I'd probably have to buy at full price) but regardless, I get a yearly Costco coupon that I could definitely use towards it....if they carried it....

Haven't heard anything new that I know of.
Maybe they will soon, espcially even since Wal Mart now has the iPhone.

[Baron58]

When I was looking for cheap LCD TV's for a museum, I wandered into Costco and checked them out. They sell previous models that are being blown out by companies.

If you see the Canon Rebel XSi Digital SLR, it's the older 10MP model, not the current 12MP model. THis is how they can sell them lower than other store, they're not the same models as the other stores (also some models are made specifically for Costco, but that's different)

Wrong.

They sell the 10MP XTi, and the 12MP XSi with different lens bundles. Trust me, I *know*. ;)

As for TVs, they do carry current-model LCD from the major manufacturers. They DEFINITELY have the latest Vizio models, nothing old there.

iPods (classic/nano/touch) are all current models there.

The two 'blowout' older-model major electronics that I've seen at Costco are plasma (not LCD) TVs, and once they cleared out previous-generation iMacs (I think it was the last of the PPC ones when they switched to Intel).

[skye12]

You'll be seeing more and more promotions on iphone pricing, probably
refurbs, as the economy continues to bottom.

But by May or so I expect the new 3rd gen iphone and/or iphone nano to show up. And like the rumors this am they might have quad core processors and other unexpected improvements. I'm waiting.