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iPod touch Down with Apple's Touch "Upgrade" Fees

A

aidanpendragon

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jul 26, 2005
928
8
I posted a comment on the news thread railing against Apple's new gouge-the-Touch-owners policy, but it deserves a full thread in this forum.

My initial outrage was, why the Touch and not the iPhone? As I first understood it, adding apps required a charge under Sarbanes-Oxley - but now that both devices had a common feature set, why were the Touches only getting charged?

Another reader then pointed out that the subscription basis of the iPhone exempts it from such charges; the Touch, with a one-time purchase price, is alone subject to them.

But I'm still angry. Angry because Apple could charge a buck for technicality's sake; but will probably charge at least $20 for no new apps, some added functionality, and the ability to buy SDK apps! Angry because this cost will either be required to get firmware 2.0; or if not, we'll again get stuck with a bunch of locked but space-eating features. And angry because, after paying 400 bucks, I'm again feeling like a second-class citizen.

Remember, the 802.11n enabler only costs $1.99 (and still made a big stink). Apple clearly can charge that if they wish. If they want more, I think it's to throw up barriers against people who could live with "everything-but-the-phone" & steer them towards subscription revenue.

What all this really makes me want to do is JB my Touch. I'm not the kind who'd ordinarily want to fool around with that, but Apple is driving me to it. It's like the anti-iTunes Store approach.
 
I'm sorry, but I paid for a particular feature set, and that's what I got. I was more than happy with the feature set I got when I bought the ipod. Did/do I want more? Yes. That doesn't mean I'm entitled to free updates so my device is constantly "current" and comparable to the newest version of it. Technology progresses over time and I realize that in a few years, my touch will become an inferior device in comparison to whatever apple has up their sleeve. In the mean time, I'm glad they give me the option of keeping up and I'm more than happy to pay $20 for a new set of features that I didn't originally purchase. I just hope that Apple takes that $20 and invests it in adding more functionality to my device.
 
Meh. Given my current track record by the time June rolls around I'll probably have run over it with something, trod on it, dropped it on the train tracks or something. Time for a new one with the firmware already installed :p
 
aidanpendragon said:
My initial outrage was, why the Touch and not the iPhone? As I first understood it, adding apps required a charge under Sarbanes-Oxley - but now that both devices had a common feature set, why were the Touches only getting charged?
Click to expand...

Same as before. They even alluded to it in the meeting. It was something along the lines of, "We account for the touch differently."

SOX is the problem. Not Apple.
 
I'm now totally against Apple and their "lets charge the iPod Touch owners" obsession.

Its getting stupid.

I paid £200 for this. Then £12.99 for the January Upgrade, which i thought was a disgusting thing to do considering the following:
  1. iPod Touch's shipped with the new upgrade get a £12.99/ $20.00 discount.
  2. iPhone customers didn't get charged.
  3. Apple is taking its customers for granted and is abusing its most important customer base, the orignal buyers

Now they're doing again!

Its starting to get ridiculous and something needs to be done.

Okay, so theres nothing that says you HAVE to buy it. But still, im outraged that they even try to charge us. We might not be paying a monthly fee like iPhone customers, but they shouldnt charge us for upgrades and not iPhone customers.

Also, i have never seen any other company charge for ugrades for anything. Dare I say it, Microsoft has NEVER charged for updates for Windows, Office or any othher products. Samsung and other MP3 companies don't charge for firmware upgrades, so why should we get ripped off by a multi-million dollar company being greedy?

Down with the charges!:mad:
 
ChrisBrightwell said:
Same as before. They even alluded to it in the meeting. It was something along the lines of, "We account for the touch differently."

SOX is the problem. Not Apple.
Click to expand...

l Krafty l said:
They dont have a choice.
Click to expand...

FALSE

There is nothing in SOX requiring this. Don't believe me? I suggest you read the Act. NOTHING in it requires these fees. It is just greed, plain and simple. SOX only deals with reporting requirements, and nothing within SOX creates a requirement to charge for software updates. The fact that Apple is saying this is a lie and false advertising. What's worse is that their loyal consumer base believes them without understanding the actual SOX Act and law.

I b*tched more about it here: https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/449010/
 
Apple is getting more than just $20 per iphone customer monthly by tying iphone to AT&T. Thus by a mere bitsy $20 to upgrade for the Touch, I say you are let off the hook too kindly.
 
thehellobob said:
I'm sorry, but I paid for a particular feature set, and that's what I got. I was more than happy with the feature set I got when I bought the ipod. ...Technology progresses over time and I realize that in a few years, my touch will become an inferior device in comparison to whatever apple has up their sleeve. .
Click to expand...

That's reasonable. Except:

-Anyone who buys a Touch gets a progressively inferior device in a matter of months or less, not years. Pretty rough given the price points.

-Are we now paying not for new features but upgrades to existing features? That's what free firmware/OS upgrades typically do. Would you like to pay, incrementally, for 10.4.1-10.4.11 (& Safari 3)?

-Worse, it's unclear whether firmware 2.0 itself will cost $$ - with no option to get the "base" for free. So now we have to pay for bug fixes, security fixes, etc.? If Microsoft did that, the Internet would collapse under all the howls of outrage. If this ends up being the case, Apple shouldn't get a pass just because "it's so great."

-Even if the firmware's free, it continues the worst problem: forced bundling of locked, for-cost apps together with bugfixes. Space is at a premium on my 16GB Touch. 1.1.3/1.1.4 ate up close to 100MB of space - for apps I don't want and won't buy. That's about 2 CDs or 1 half-hour show worth of space. There's no option for me to get "just the firmware." Imagine if you didn't want or need iWork - but it came bundled with 10.4.11, ate up space on your hard drive, and couldn't be deleted. Sounds like 2.0 firmware will continue to do the same.

l Krafty l said:
Don't wanna pay, then dont.
Click to expand...

That's fine, except again for the forced bundling and/or will we have to pay for bugfixes?

If Apple had to charge for accounting reasons, they could set some <$5 price, presumably. That they don't suggests they have less innocent motives than they protest to.
 
and who will pay for the developers that put in the work to make those extra apps for the ipod touch?
 
yeh but apple had spent bazillions on developing the interface and applications for the iphone/itouch - and you expect them to just give you a major update to the applications for free? Get real. The update had turned the iTouch from an ipod with internet into a full on contender to the blackberry, with full email.
 
scotty96LSC said:
At roughly $70 a month or more to have an iPhone, I think a one-time fee is cheap. I'll pay the extra and stay monthly iPhone bill free.
Click to expand...

It's not like you don't get any other service - at rates comparable to other providers' - for that $70.

Adokimus said:
FALSE
Click to expand...

I'm sympathetic, but would like to see a quotation from S-O or some outside analysis to back this up.

I think your best point is this: "Apple TV owners weren't charged with an upgrade fee."

Damn. The argument that "iPhone and :apple:TV are both subscription, thus amortized, thus not required by S-O" doesn't fly. Deciding to rent movies or not isn't the same as having a 2-year iPhone contract. The Apple TV case blows holes in Apple's Touch argument.

orpheus1120 said:
Apple is getting more than just $20 per iphone customer monthly by tying iphone to AT&T. Thus by a mere bitsy $20 to upgrade for the Touch, I say you are let off the hook too kindly.
Click to expand...

Wow, you're right, Apple could be screwing me even more! I should be so grateful for how kindly they're letting me off the hook!


...One other point. The Steve Jobs bio iCon has a great quote where Jobs or someone at :apple: belittles music companies for wanting subscriptions, not 99 cent sales, because they're greedy: to the effect of, "some bean counter saw AOL's success and thought, 'let's get a piece of that recurring subscription revenue,' to the expense of customer & experience." I fear Apple is falling into this same trap.
 
I'm in the same boat. It's BS that everytime we want to upgrade we'll have to charge. i'm suprised they don't charge more for buying songs on the Touch Itunes store.
 
The touch upgrade is the equivalent to upgrading from Tiger to Leopard. You'll be upgrading to version 2.0.

Now charging Touch users for the .1 upgrade - not cool.

The iPhone upgrades are more than likely included in the monthly fee.
 
SwiftLives said:
The touch upgrade is the equivalent to upgrading from Tiger to Leopard. You'll be upgrading to version 2.0.

Now charging Touch users for the .1 upgrade - not cool.

The iPhone upgrades are more than likely included in the monthly fee.
Click to expand...

Realistically, the App Store should be free for any Touch user. The other upgrades should not be $20 and who knows what they will cost.
 
I bought an iPod Touch, then bought some applications for it. How is this any different than when I buy an Apple and have to pay for iWork? Just because some other people bought a different device and got some applications for free shouldn't concern me. People who are comparing the purchasing of applications to firmware updates are comparing apples to oranges, I don't recall paying for 1.4 for my Touch.
 
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