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Yes - if you are a CURRENT iPhone user, whenever Apple comes out with another, you are ALWAYS eligible for an upgrade. Unlike with other phones, you have to wait forever to become eligible, Apple has made it so that if they release a new iPhone say, every month... you'd be eligible every month. So don't get in a pickle about whether or not you should buy one for $99 at Best Buy because you are worried about the one coming out in June --- you'll be eligible then too!

And, for what it's worth, for $15 (you can cancel ANYTIME) at Best Buy, your phone is insured for everything......EVERYTHING folks - trust me, I asked every question in the book. So if you drop it and it shatters the day the new ones are released in June, it will be replaced. Go ask the SA at Best Buy all about it. My customer service today was top notch. I am loving the 3G ... my 2G was truly a lemon......

If I cancel my contract in a month, does Best Buy still insure my phone for he $15?
 
No you will not be billed the difference between what you paid and the retail cost. There is no published "Retail" for the iPhone 3G and that means there is no "No Commitment" price. Just understand that you will be paying all of the other fees and including service until the contract is terminated and you pay the ETF.

The other post is thinking about other Authorized Agents that further subsidized the phone (think Amazon, Wirefly, Letstalk) and require you to stay in contract for 181 days. Best Buy is not doing this since they can't discount the iPhone price. It is just like buying it at AT&T or Apple or now even Wal*mart.

Dave

Thanks for the clarification Dave.
 
I still think it is shameful for Apple to sell to BestBuy. Any of my local bestbuys have the most pathetic looking Apple displays. Just like it was in the 90s.

Anything that looks like a good deal at bestbuy is not a good deal.
 
Mine's pretty nice. Little section to the right of the main PC section, with some iMacs and portables and a row of accessories.

The iPhone part though is in the front, separate from that, and the iPhone gets more prominent placement than anything I think.
 
Yes - if you are a CURRENT iPhone user, whenever Apple comes out with another, you are ALWAYS eligible for an upgrade. Unlike with other phones, you have to wait forever to become eligible, Apple has made it so that if they release a new iPhone say, every month... you'd be eligible every month. So don't get in a pickle about whether or not you should buy one for $99 at Best Buy because you are worried about the one coming out in June --- you'll be eligible then too!

And, for what it's worth, for $15 (you can cancel ANYTIME) at Best Buy, your phone is insured for everything......EVERYTHING folks - trust me, I asked every question in the book. So if you drop it and it shatters the day the new ones are released in June, it will be replaced. Go ask the SA at Best Buy all about it. My customer service today was top notch. I am loving the 3G ... my 2G was truly a lemon......

I dont think that is write. If you have 1st gen iPhone then you would eligible at any time to upgrade to a new 2 gen iPhone (3G) or to the upcoming 3 gen iPhone. But that is only becuase the 1st gen iPhone price wasnt subsidized.

Since the 2nd gen iPhone (3G) is subsidized you should be stuck with that phone until you upgrade date comes (20 months?). I dont think if you currently have an 2 gen iPhone (3G) you would be able to upgrade to a 3 gen iPhone at the subsidized price.

Can you provide documentation that says you can upgrade no matter what?
I want an ipHone but I think I will wait until the summer to get a 3gen unless you can upgrade a 2 gen to a 3 gen immediately with paying the full price of the 3 gen.
 
One clarification. There is a published retail price for the 3G at Best Buy and its $599.

I recently purchased a refurbished 8G phone at Best Buy for $149 and paid ~$56 in sales tax. Thanks to a crazy California law, when you purchase a subsidized mobile phone, you still have to pay tax on the MSRP. (Yes, many !@#%$%@) And the MSRP used in this case by Best Buy is $599.

I am told that its the same if you were to purchase a 3G at an Apple store and have a California address.
 
I dont think that is write. If you have 1st gen iPhone then you would eligible at any time to upgrade to a new 2 gen iPhone (3G) or to the upcoming 3 gen iPhone. But that is only becuase the 1st gen iPhone price wasnt subsidized.

Since the 2nd gen iPhone (3G) is subsidized you should be stuck with that phone until you upgrade date comes (20 months?). I dont think if you currently have an 2 gen iPhone (3G) you would be able to upgrade to a 3 gen iPhone at the subsidized price.

Can you provide documentation that says you can upgrade no matter what?
I want an ipHone but I think I will wait until the summer to get a 3gen unless you can upgrade a 2 gen to a 3 gen immediately with paying the full price of the 3 gen.

I can't provide documentation - but this is all what I was told by the SA at Best Buy yesterday. It's something that Apple does so that good customers (and iPhone lovers) continue to upgrade to the most current iPhone released. FWIW the SA at BB said the 4G might be released in June but it's only "really working well" in Baltimore.......idk
 
One clarification. There is a published retail price for the 3G at Best Buy and its $599.

I recently purchased a refurbished 8G phone at Best Buy for $149 and paid ~$56 in sales tax. Thanks to a crazy California law, when you purchase a subsidized mobile phone, you still have to pay tax on the MSRP. (Yes, many !@#%$%@) And the MSRP used in this case by Best Buy is $599.

I am told that its the same if you were to purchase a 3G at an Apple store and have a California address.
In certain states, sales tax is calculated based on the un-activated "Retail Price".

There is even a published price of $599 / $699 from AT&T: Existing AT&T customers who are not currently eligible for an upgrade discount can purchase iPhone 3G for $399 for the 8GB model or $499 for the 16GB model. Both options require a new two-year service agreement. In the future, AT&T will offer a no-contract-required option for $599 (8GB) or $699 (16GB).

Source: http://www.att.com/gen/press-room?pid=4800&cdvn=news&newsarticleid=25883

Dave
 
I can't provide documentation - but this is all what I was told by the SA at Best Buy yesterday. It's something that Apple does so that good customers (and iPhone lovers) continue to upgrade to the most current iPhone released. FWIW the SA at BB said the 4G might be released in June but it's only "really working well" in Baltimore.......idk

The SA at Best Buy was wrong. I was just at an AT&T store today and asked about this. Solarguy17 is right. Anyone with a first generation iPhone can get the upgrade price because the first generation iPhone was not subsidized. Anyone with an iPhone 3G will not be given the same opportunity when the new model is released later this summer.
 
The SA at Best Buy was wrong. I was just at an AT&T store today and asked about this. Solarguy17 is right. Anyone with a first generation iPhone can get the upgrade price because the first generation iPhone was not subsidized. Anyone with an iPhone 3G will not be given the same opportunity when the new model is released later this summer.

I'm hoping that customers who paid the unsubsidized price (like me) for the iPhone 3G last year will get the subsidized price for this year's iPhone ;)
 
The SA at Best Buy was wrong. I was just at an AT&T store today and asked about this. Solarguy17 is right. Anyone with a first generation iPhone can get the upgrade price because the first generation iPhone was not subsidized. Anyone with an iPhone 3G will not be given the same opportunity when the new model is released later this summer.

alright, I just wanted to make sure i wasn't the only one that thought this. I would trust BB associates, I would really only trust Apple employees because sometimes cellphone salesmen will tell you anything to sell a phone, I know I used to work at RS and while I never lied I probably wasn't the most honest person but I know there were ppl that were a lot worse then me.

But to be fair you could probably buy a iPhone 3G for 200 and sell it for 400 or 500 when the new iPhones are released, especially if you unlock and jailbreak.
 
I can't provide documentation - but this is all what I was told by the SA at Best Buy yesterday. It's something that Apple does so that good customers (and iPhone lovers) continue to upgrade to the most current iPhone released. FWIW the SA at BB said the 4G might be released in June but it's only "really working well" in Baltimore.......idk

I wouldn't trust the BB SA, they are kind of shady, and generally not that intelligent. I had better luck at BB then CC but I always had more knowledgeable service at FE and RS.
 
The SA at Best Buy was wrong. I was just at an AT&T store today and asked about this. Solarguy17 is right. Anyone with a first generation iPhone can get the upgrade price because the first generation iPhone was not subsidized. Anyone with an iPhone 3G will not be given the same opportunity when the new model is released later this summer.

Does it matter how long you have had the first generation iphone though? Also, would the account automatically allow you to provide the discount or is it something they have to go in and do?
 
I'm hoping that customers who paid the unsubsidized price (like me) for the iPhone 3G last year will get the subsidized price for this year's iPhone ;)
Well your price was subsidized even at $399 / $499, that was considered an early upgrade and since you signed a two service agreement you might not qualify for the best pricing for the next iPhone. Nothing is official one way or the other at the moment. :confused:

From the July 1 2008 AT&T Press Release...

Existing AT&T customers who are not currently eligible for an upgrade discount can purchase iPhone 3G for $399 for the 8GB model or $499 for the 16GB model. Both options require a new two-year service agreement. In the future, AT&T will offer a no-contract-required option for $599 (8GB) or $699 (16GB).

Current customers may also choose to wait until they become eligible for an upgrade discount. Eligibility is generally determined by amount of time remaining on a current contract and payment history.​

Dave
 
Well your price was subsidized even at $399 / $499, that was considered an early upgrade and since you signed a two service agreement you might not qualify for the best pricing for the next iPhone. Nothing is official one way or the other at the moment. :confused:

From the July 1 2008 AT&T Press Release...

Existing AT&T customers who are not currently eligible for an upgrade discount can purchase iPhone 3G for $399 for the 8GB model or $499 for the 16GB model. Both options require a new two-year service agreement. In the future, AT&T will offer a no-contract-required option for $599 (8GB) or $699 (16GB).

Current customers may also choose to wait until they become eligible for an upgrade discount. Eligibility is generally determined by amount of time remaining on a current contract and payment history.​

Dave

It's hard to tell yet, as they haven't said any official announcements yet (of course why would they, it's just February.. duh) We'll wait and see what happens in the next couple of months though..
 
Well, I could not wait any longer (first time buyer) and decided to get a 16GB - so I will find out first hand what happens when the new one comes out!
 
i had been wanting an iphone for awhile but always thought that the price was more than i could afford. however, my father in law is a silver member at BB so we met him last night and i picked up and 8GB model. due to the fact that i was driving home, my wife was the one playing around with it. so far it works ok, except for a couple of things, no sound and some annoying messages that i can't figure out how to get rid of.
 
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