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alecapple

macrumors regular
Original poster
Feb 23, 2008
109
0
At the moment I have a 8gb EDGE iPhone, that I have had for about 2 years. The contract we have with ATT goes up in October, and I don't know whether or not I should go ahead and get a 32gb 3GS or wait until next June for the next generation to be released, possibly on Verizon.

The phone I have now was new/refurbished as of last weekend (it's my 5th one) and I have apple care on it until December. So if I were to sell it on ebay now I would be able to include apple care for about 3 more months, be selling a brand new phone, and hopefully be able to get the most money for it.

The only thing holding me back right now is the fact that the data plan would be $30 for data instead of $20, and we don't even have 3G where I live.

I just want to know what you would do if you were in my shoes per se.
Thanks!

sell now applecare, good condition,
 

The Californian

macrumors 68040
Jan 17, 2009
3,162
15
Surfers Paradise
First of all, if you're holding out for Verizon ... The chances are really slim. ( You can see all the debates about it here ) If you don't have 3G the benefits of upgrading will be very slim seeing as most of the benefits require 3G. When it comes to the next gen iPhone, we can do nothing but speculate what upgrades will be included.

All the stuff about having AppleCare on your first gen and hoping to get more money for it, it's so past end of life that theres not much you can include in it to get more money for it. Sorry.
 

kornyboy

macrumors 68000
Sep 27, 2004
1,529
0
Knoxville, TN (USA)
Wirelessly posted (iPhone: Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 3_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/528.18 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/4.0 Mobile/7C144 Safari/528.16)

xbuddycorex said:
First of all, if you're holding out for Verizon ... The chances are really slim. ( You can see all the debates about it here ) If you don't have 3G the benefits of upgrading will be very slim seeing as most of the benefits require 3G. When it comes to the next gen iPhone, we can do nothing but speculate what upgrades will be included.

All the stuff about having AppleCare on your first gen and hoping to get more money for it, it's so past end of life that theres not much you can include in it to get more money for it. Sorry.

You actually will be picking up quite a few features such as, video recording, a much better camera that has touch focus as well as better resolution, a compass, faster processor, more RAM, GPS, and I'm probably missing a few. I think it will be a huge step for you even without 3G coverage in your home town. All things said, the decision is up to you, but I wouldn't discount the added features that do not require a network. I guess it comes down to whether or not you want to pay the extra cash every month to have those features.
 

.:R2theT

macrumors 6502
Jul 1, 2007
283
0
VR6
I just want to know what you would do if you were in my shoes per se.

I mostly am in your shoes.

1st gen. iPhone 8 GB, no AppleCare(but do people really care about that anyway) and am out of my contract.

I'm waiting. Sure I would love to have the quicker device but mine still works fine. I wish I had more storage but by waiting until next year I at least have a chance at 64 GB. If not that then at the very least increased battery life, which is a complaint of many.

But I actually don't know why you are even considering it. You don't have 3G service readily available in your area. Why waste the money when you will still be on EDGE anyway?
 

solideliquid

macrumors 6502
Aug 8, 2008
374
145
Does Sprint have high speed service in your area? Look into the Palm Pre, it looks like a very capable smart phone, minus all App Store, of course.
 

nehunte

macrumors 6502
Apr 30, 2009
331
0
Does Sprint have high speed service in your area? Look into the Palm Pre, it looks like a very capable smart phone, minus all App Store, of course.

That's your recommendation? That wasn't even a choice he offered. Get outta here man.
 

solideliquid

macrumors 6502
Aug 8, 2008
374
145
That's your recommendation? That wasn't even a choice he offered. Get outta here man.

I was in the same position two years ago. I had the 2G iPhone and then upgraded to the 3G for lack of a good smartphone at the time, and my town didn't have 3G service.

If another company offers 3G speeds in his town, why would it make sense to get the iPhone? If I was the OP I would get the lowe cost option phone and maybe a touch.
 

IBradMac

macrumors 68000
Jun 27, 2008
1,799
2
Ohio
Next June or wait until June 2011?

June 2011 or wait until June 2012?

etc.

If you wait, you'll never have one.

lol, yeah the wait or buy now choice always haunts us, no matter which way we choose. ;)

@-OP; If my plan was up in October I'd go ahead and get the 3GS. If, it was any later like say Jan. or Feb. I'd wait. Your choice, really. :apple:
 

zzkenoman

macrumors newbie
Dec 26, 2003
3
0
laguna hills
I also have the 8gb 2G iphone 1 gen, I'll wait till next year, as long as my apps work, I can read my email, texts get thru, map works, visit a few web sites and pay my bills, I'm fine for now.
 

soLoredd

macrumors 6502a
Mar 12, 2007
967
0
California
I updated my 2G for the 3GS and don't regret it at all. The 3GS is so much faster at everything, productivity increases. Even on EDGE the phone just feels so much quicker. Not to mention video recording, compass & GPS, and the space.

I've decided that will be plan, every 2 years, to upgrade. As long as the subsidy pricing is in effect - I don't want to pay what I paid for my 2G again.
 

.:R2theT

macrumors 6502
Jul 1, 2007
283
0
VR6
I've decided that will be plan, every 2 years, to upgrade. As long as the subsidy pricing is in effect - I don't want to pay what I paid for my 2G again.

I agree with the update plan but mine is more like every 3 or 4 years based on the technology and whether or not the device is still functional. Thus far my 1st gen. is still going strong, no issues other than me using up all my GBs for Frisky Dingo and the Bourne Trilogy!

But keep in mind you are still paying for the device even with the subsidized price. They just get it back through the data plan and texts(and what other services they decide to charge for at a later date).

If I remember correctly, the 3G was actually more expensive over the course of the contract than the 1st gen. iPhone. I haven't seen a breakdown for the 3GS but I am sure it is similar.
 

electroshock

macrumors 6502a
Sep 7, 2009
641
0
At the moment I have a 8gb EDGE iPhone, that I have had for about 2 years. The contract we have with ATT goes up in October, and I don't know whether or not I should go ahead and get a 32gb 3GS or wait until next June for the next generation to be released, possibly on Verizon.

Kinda a dumb question, but what do you lose (that you can't live without) if you don't upgrade to whatever the next version is? That's the part that wasn't clear to me.
 

.:R2theT

macrumors 6502
Jul 1, 2007
283
0
VR6
Kinda a dumb question, but what do you lose (that you can't live without) if you don't upgrade to whatever the next version is? That's the part that wasn't clear to me.

There is NOTHING to lose.

They just want us to help them justify a purchase they don't really need to make. The same as any other "should I or shouldn't I" thread on here.
 

Gerge

macrumors newbie
Oct 27, 2008
19
0
In Finland one is forced to wait for the next model. Our local provider promises delivery in 8-12 weeks! I´ve been waiting for mine for 5 weeks now but some of my friends have waited for over 12 weeks. The funny thing is that the same company (TeliaSonera) in Sweden is delivering within 3-5 business days.
 

maflynn

macrumors Haswell
May 3, 2009
73,419
43,307
If you don't get 3g coverage and you have to pay for it, I'd look at verizon or sprint and possibly a different phone.

As for the eternal buy now vs. wait debate. If you need an iPhone now, buy now, if you can wait, then wait. Also consider the fact that there will always be a newer better [insert device here] around the corner.

As for the verizon question. I'd not hold my breath anytime soon. I'm not in the know and I have no idea if the iPhone on verizon will ever happen, and whether its a good or bad thing (they have their own app store and want all phone manufacturers to use that) but I'll worry about that issue if it arises not before.
 

jkozlow3

macrumors 6502a
Jul 16, 2008
973
658
people who say the 3GS isnt a big upgrade from 3G dont have a clue..

Well, I respectfully disagree. I have a 3G and I know 2 people with a 3GS. I have tested things side by side on several occasions. I don't care about the video recording, better camera or compass, so those are mute points for me.

On a wifi network, the 3GS is DEFINITELY faster. But when I'm on a wifi network, I generally have my laptop (@ home or work). When it comes to loading websites on an EDGE or 3G signal, I have not seen any real performance improvements (maybe a couple of seconds at best and only on some sites). I believe that AT&T's network is the bottleneck when not on a fast wifi connection and not the phone itself. The 3G seems to load content fast enough for the speed AT&T serves it up at.

I think it just depends on what you use the phone for. If you play fast-motion games, need video recording capabilities or need to use your phone in lieu of a laptop on wifi networks, then yes, I'd say there are some real benefits to the 3GS. Otherwise, both the 3G and 3GS call, text, email and load web content just about equally on AT&T's network based on my experience.

Personally, I am waiting until June/July to upgrade my 3G as the 3GS isn't enough of an upgrade for what I use my phone for. I don't want to waste my upgrade (in December) on a phone that does everything just about the same. Hopefully next summer's model will be more of an upgrade. If not, no big deal.
 

TheSpaz

macrumors 604
Jun 20, 2005
7,032
1
What would be the gain for me, if I went from 3G to 3GS?

Just wait for June if you're happy with your iPhone 3G. Let's see if it's twice as good as the iPhone 3GS. Then all the people who bought the iPhone 3GS will be like "Crap! I can't upgrade because I have to wait another year!"

Hehe.
 
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