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Why are the new phones $199 in the US and £324 in the UK
- Thread starter menotknow
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LoL. Ironic that you are palpably angry that you cannot buy this '*****' from Apple at a lower price.
You are not making a fair comparison.
AT&T only offer their iPhones on 24 month contracts.
If you compare phone costs for O2 24 month contracts then it doesn't seem a rip-off.
8GB - AT&T $99 / O2 - Free
16GB - AT&T $199 / O2 Free or £87.11 on the cheaper tariff
32GB - AT&T $299 / O2 Free or £96.89 on the middle tariff or £175.19 on the cheaper tariff.
The price you are quoting is for PAYG, which is not even offered to US customers. Also remember the UK prices include VAT, local taxes are added onto the US price in most states.
I have no idea what the people in this thread are smoking, but we get the iPhone miles cheaper than the US.
If you're looking at the price on the Apple UK website, that is the price of the pay as you go phone. On the US Apple website, that is the price of the phone with 2 year contract.
Lets go over to the O2 website shall we? http://shop.o2.co.uk/update/paymonth.html
We pay around £87.11 or around $130 US for the iPhone 3G S 16gb with a 2 year contract. The contract costs £35 a month, or $50 a month. That gets 600 minutes, 500 texts and unlimited data. Americans pay around $80 a month for a similar contract.
In short, the UK is one of the cheapest places in the world to buy an iPhone. If the OP had done any form of research he would have realised this.
If you're looking at the price on the Apple UK website, that is the price of the pay as you go phone. On the US Apple website, that is the price of the phone with 2 year contract.
Lets go over to the O2 website shall we? http://shop.o2.co.uk/update/paymonth.html
We pay around £87.11 or around $130 US for the iPhone 3G S 16gb with a 2 year contract. The contract costs £35 a month, or $50 a month. That gets 600 minutes, 500 texts and unlimited data. Americans pay around $80 a month for a similar contract.
In short, the UK is one of the cheapest places in the world to buy an iPhone. If the OP had done any form of research he would have realised this.
The free iPhone on a 24 month contract has only appeared recently before you paid £99 for 8GB / £169 for 16GB phone on a £35 p/m contract. I think the OP is miffed at the samething that I am, this time round the 18 month contract is £184 for the 16GB and £284 for a 32GB. This gets cheaper the more expensive contract you take out.
I would have expected the 16GB and 32GB to just take the price of the current 8/16 GB phones.
I would have expected the 16GB and 32GB to just take the price of the current 8/16 GB phones.
Sales tax in Europe is generally a lot higher. 19% in The Netherlands, 20% in Belgium.
The 15% is only temporary, considering the amount of money the government borrowed, i think it is projected to go even higher than it used to be, 18-20%? something like that (not sure)
And about the NHS, the system is not sustainable, i can assure you privatization is very likely. the quality of the care, won't be the same, in hospitals doctors are replaced with specialist nurses. In my hospital, they the nurse practitioners are competing with junior doctors for experiences (practical procedures). It is a disaster!
And about the NHS, the system is not sustainable, i can assure you privatization is very likely. the quality of the care, won't be the same, in hospitals doctors are replaced with specialist nurses. In my hospital, they the nurse practitioners are competing with junior doctors for experiences (practical procedures). It is a disaster!
sales taxes on cell phones in US are ridiculous
Guys, we in the United States get ripped off on cell phone "taxes, fees, or whatever you want to call them"
Personally I'd rather have a flat 15% or 17.5% VAT and be done with it.
The problem in the US is that state and city and local government keep on trying to add "fees" into cell phone bills in order to raise revenue.
My people in the US pay between 10-22% "cell phone taxes and fees or universal charges etc".
Here's a link to cell phone taxes (by United States)http://www.askstudent.com/money/cell-phone-taxes-by-state/
Guys, we in the United States get ripped off on cell phone "taxes, fees, or whatever you want to call them"
Personally I'd rather have a flat 15% or 17.5% VAT and be done with it.
The problem in the US is that state and city and local government keep on trying to add "fees" into cell phone bills in order to raise revenue.
My people in the US pay between 10-22% "cell phone taxes and fees or universal charges etc".
Here's a link to cell phone taxes (by United States)http://www.askstudent.com/money/cell-phone-taxes-by-state/
I would gladly take 17.5% sales tax and universal health care over 9% sales tax and no health care
I think I'll stick with 8.25% sales tax and the free healthcare I get through my job.
O dear o dear an American conservative who probably has Fox news on all day
Don't pick and choose the partial facts that please you. Paint the complete story. I'm opposed to high taxes however the reality in European (national) taxes is quite different.
You need to look at net taxes, i.e. the final tax rate that includes deductions. For instance: in the Netherlands, where I live, tax brackets are 33%, 42%, 52%. However all intrest paid on mortgages can be deducted. For a good view and comparison on national tax rates look at (OECD data):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Income_Taxes_By_Country.svg
The US has a lower final tax rate however it's not that much of a difference. Your '50 to 60%' is a joke.
Second: US healthcare is mediocre, as several international benchmark studies have shown. You might think it's superior, however the facts show it's not.
http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/0505/p02s01-uspo.html