iPhone 3G S Launch Sales to Exceed 3G Launch?

[50548]

Wow dam you apple... for not making this on verizon...
want one now

And AGAIN, Apple is supreme in the markets where it innovates...this is just another mindblowing success by the iPhone as the BEST, fastest, most advanced and most well-integrated mobile phone in the world...these sales a sure sign that solidifies its world domination in the smartphone segment for years to come.

WINDOWS MOBILE IS DEAD, PALM IS DEAD, RIM IS DEAD. GO EAT SOME CROW, PUNDITS!

 

[Banyan Bruce]

O2 iphone Queues

I cant go into the O2 shop until 2moro morning because i actually have a job to go to!

Do you think they will still have stock?

I don't think you'll have any snags getting one of these tomorrow from O2, unless they've got their got their stock levels badly wrong. There were no queues down here at either carphone warehouse or O2 shops. Over priced and over hyped. The OS 3.0 update had given the 3G a new lease of life and that makes the cost and contract associated with an upgrade even less attractive.
There are signs of a rush in other places...let's see how long it lasts.
Of course, shorting supply will stimulate demand, but will that turn into real sales?

 

[ruckus]

I know a lot of people who pre-ordered. Remember, all of those 1st gens are due for new contracts now. Many of those original buyers either didn't go 3G because of cost or past their phone on to other people. Speaking personally, I think two years is about the life of most phones. My 1st gen is showing wear and tear on the screen and some buttons need harder pushing, etc. So I happily moved to 3GS. Mine doesn't come until next week.

My first gen is almost mint! I never upgraded to 3G because it offered nothing for me. I don't live in a 3G area, and I didn't need GPS built into my phone.

I'll likely pickup the new phone because as a developer I may want to utilize the new features of the phone, like the compass. But I've also been considering moving to a different carrier since I can still do my development on my first gen, and I'd like to pay less per month than the new iPhone will cost me.

In either case, I'm in no rush. I like watching the frenzy though

 

[50548]

Just another question:

My stupid carrier in Switzerland doesn't offer the iPhone officially, only through SIM-unlocked channels that I won't use; so what should I do?

1 - Pay the crazy cancellation fee of CHF 450 and get an iPhone with my old number?

2 - Keep the current contract (monthly minimum charge of CHF 15, I think) until I cancel it next year in July without charges, and at the same time get an iPhone with another carrier and number?

3 - Be patient and do nothing until I cancel my current subscription next year?

 

[JayLenochiniMac]

So much for some "minor" update

 

[jroug]

Check Your Existing Plan Before You Buy; Baseline Plan Cost is Upgrade Pricing Factor

So I went to the apple store this AM to get the 3Gs phone. I currently have a 3G phone. About 1 week ago I went to AT&T and they said I would be eligible for the $299 (32GB) phone on JULY 7th 2009 (also verified on the At&T website). After the announcement came when "people who would become eligible in July,Aug,Sep are eligible now", I was happy to hear than b/c that meant I could upgrade today. When I went the Apple store it still only gave be the $499 price. People at Apple new what I was talking about but didn't know how to adjust the price and AT&T (cust serv) were not helpful. Anyone else run into this problem.

I went ahead and bought the phone $499, but am hoping to get a $200 dollar refund. Any ideas what went wrong?

All help appreciated.

I had the same problem - this is a typical AT&T bait & switch. I bought the last two iPhones on day 1 and activated them the same day, choosing the highest tier of service they offered. My monthly bill is $120, so that would seem to meet the "your monthly plan must be $100 or more" rule.

Presumably I couldn't be more qualified, right?

No, apparently. According to AT&T, I'm not qualified for the upgrade price until December. My monthly charge is $95 a month, plus $25 in TAX, meaning that I don't qualify because even though I took the most expensive plan they offered, that $5 less a month I've been paying for the last two years is *just* shy enough for them to deny me (& you, I assume) the upgrade pricing.

Admittedly, I didn't read the no doubt VERY FINE print, so certainly some of the blame falls on me (not that I've seen this fine print anywhere yet).

I am still annoyed, especially after waiting in line and then having no Apple associate who could tell me why I was coming up short. I was going to order it online, but when I started the process before AT&T revised the plan, I saw the $700 price tag and bailed on completing the order.

All in all, another badly orchestrated and executed "plan" by AT&T.

 

[joemolomo]

Damn

Managed to get one put aside for me at Carphone Warehouse on Weds in UK, and today they brought it out put it on the counter went through my details, and bum i have to wait till 26th because i've only been on simplicity for 3 weeks damn

 

[Sense Field]

Yeah Right! I went to my local at&t store this morning to get my wife the new 3Gs (she can really use the better battery life). I went at 9am and they had signs on the door that said "The line starts here". Went inside and absolutely NO customers and about 10 sales associates... I made a joke about nobody wanting the new iPhone and they just laughed. They only had the 32GB so I ended up going to the local Best Buy and got one. The girl at BB said that I was the first person to buy one. In fact, their system didn't have the SKU number loaded so they had to do a manual override or something... was in there 30 min!

They opened at 7am...you were two hours late.

 

[chr1s60]

Even if Apple does exceed sales of the 3G launch, I think it would be interesting to see what the sales COULD have been had they allowed all iPhone users to upgrade. I know the one twitter petition out there had over 12,000 signatures on it a few days ago and I am sure many more that would have upgraded didn't sign any petitions. At the very minimum I would think that the non-upgradable users would have accounted for 50,000+ sales. That ends up as millions of dollars in missed sales. Just something to think about as far as sales go.

 

[aristotle]

Yeah Right! I went to my local at&t store this morning to get my wife the new 3Gs (she can really use the better battery life). I went at 9am and they had signs on the door that said "The line starts here". Went inside and absolutely NO customers and about 10 sales associates... I made a joke about nobody wanting the new iPhone and they just laughed. They only had the 32GB so I ended up going to the local Best Buy and got one. The girl at BB said that I was the first person to buy one. In fact, their system didn't have the SKU number loaded so they had to do a manual override or something... was in there 30 min!

Right because South Carolina is the centre of the universe.

 

[stockcerts]

I had the same problem - this is a typical AT&T bait & switch. I bought the last two iPhones on day 1 and activated them the same day, choosing the highest tier of service they offered. My monthly bill is $120, so that would seem to meet the "your monthly plan must be $100 or more" rule.

Presumably I couldn't be more qualified, right?

No, apparently. According to AT&T, I'm not qualified for the upgrade price until December. My monthly charge is $95 a month, plus $25 in TAX, meaning that I don't qualify because even though I took the most expensive plan they offered, that $5 less a month I've been paying for the last two years is *just* shy enough for them to deny me (& you, I assume) the upgrade pricing.

Admittedly, I didn't read the no doubt VERY FINE print, so certainly some of the blame falls on me (not that I've seen this fine print anywhere yet).

I am still annoyed, especially after waiting in line and then having no Apple associate who could tell me why I was coming up short. I was going to order it online, but when I started the process before AT&T revised the plan, I saw the $700 price tag and bailed on completing the order.

All in all, another badly orchestrated and executed "plan" by AT&T.

Similar situation for me. I just can't jusify $400-. I would buy one today for $200, but that's not in the cards. You would think AT&T would jump at the chance to reset my contract so I have another two years, as opposed to the one I have now. Does it really take AT&T almost two years to recoup their dollars for a subsidized phone? I have a feeling that after the initial sales level off, they may change their policy...based on pressure from Apple and potential upgraders that aren't willing to spend $400- or more.

 

[Mr Maui]

Even if Apple does exceed sales of the 3G launch, I think it would be interesting to see what the sales COULD have been had they allowed all iPhone users to upgrade. I know the one twitter petition out there had over 12,000 signatures on it a few days ago and I am sure many more that would have upgraded didn't sign any petitions. At the very minimum I would think that the non-upgradable users would have accounted for 50,000+ sales. That ends up as millions of dollars in missed sales. Just something to think about as far as sales go.

Remember ... the upgrade limitations are AT&T, not Apple.

Similar situation for me. I just can't jusify $400-. I would buy one today for $200, but that's not in the cards. You would think AT&T would jump at the chance to reset my contract so I have another two years, as opposed to the one I have now. Does it really take AT&T almost two years to recoup their dollars for a subsidized phone? I have a feeling that after the initial sales level off, they may change their policy...based on pressure from Apple and potential upgraders that aren't willing to spend $400- or more.

Your logic is missing the point just a bit. While is seems "logical" that AT&T should jump at the chance to have you under contract for two more years instead of just one more, they already have you under contract for one more year under your OLD contract. So selling you a new phone only gains them one year, which is why they offer the phone to you for $399/499 versus the no contract price of $599/699. The $199/299 price is for when they can "GAIN" two years of service commitment or for those shorter-term users who have already paid for the largest plans, thus making more money for AT&T during the early half of their contract. AT&T is not oblicated to offer deals to those presently under contract. You are required to sign a two year deal even with "cheap" or free, less-featured, non-smartphones.

 

[NightFox]

Of course O2 sold more iPhone on launch day today compared with last summer's 3G launch. They only had 3 to 5 iPhone 3G for store last year despite the high demand. Therefore, it's just a matter of stock than popularity. We should wait for a month or so to judge iPhone 3GS success relative to iPhone 3G.

And IIRC, O2 couldn't even sell the stock they did have because there system was down for most of the day.

 

[DiamondMac]

Similar situation for me. I just can't jusify $400-. I would buy one today for $200, but that's not in the cards. You would think AT&T would jump at the chance to reset my contract so I have another two years, as opposed to the one I have now. Does it really take AT&T almost two years to recoup their dollars for a subsidized phone? I have a feeling that after the initial sales level off, they may change their policy...based on pressure from Apple and potential upgraders that aren't willing to spend $400- or more.

Why would AT&T jump at that chance when next year you will want yet ANOTHER cut-off mid-way through?

Fact is, they make their profits the 2nd year so people shouldn't be surprised they just don't want to give it away

Why people feel they deserve to break their contract is beyond me.

Those who think their contract should be extended ANOTHER 2 years make me laugh....like you all won't be wanting ANOTHER phone the following year? Should AT&T just keep adding years knowing the following year will be another headache?

 

[Ted13]

In NYC the AT&T stores are sold out -- just checked on Wall ST., they told me they have been completely sold out since the early AM. Will have to hope the reservation line at Apple Soho is reasonable after 5PM.

There is no doubt in my mind they will sell more phones this time around, because of mail order and home activation. The only limiting factor is sufficient stock, but I would have to think that Apple is well prepared.

 

[chr1s60]

Remember ... the upgrade limitations are AT&T, not Apple.

This is true, but that is money for AT&T too if they charge all those users the $18 upgrade fee. Just something Apple might want to look at and bring up when it comes time to sit down with AT&T to talk about extending that exclusive contract.

Why would AT&T jump at that chance when next year you will want yet ANOTHER cut-off mid-way through?

Fact is, they make their profits the 2nd year so people shouldn't be surprised they just don't want to give it away

Phone companies make back that subsidized price well before the second year of any contract starts. The second year is just ALL profits.

 

[twoodcc]

wow. that would be impressive. i bet if they do sell more, it's only b/c they had pre-orders, and that they probably have more stock to sell

 

[MacVixen]

Why would AT&T jump at that chance when next year you will want yet ANOTHER cut-off mid-way through?

Fact is, they make their profits the 2nd year so people shouldn't be surprised they just don't want to give it away

Why people feel they deserve to break their contract is beyond me.

Those who think their contract should be extended ANOTHER 2 years make me laugh....like you all won't be wanting ANOTHER phone the following year? Should AT&T just keep adding years knowing the following year will be another headache?

Following that model, I can see people with 6 or 7 year contracts at some point!

If this continues to be a problem, I think AT&T has a couple of things they could try:
a) 1 year contracts with a higher subsidized price for the phone - say $399 for the 32G
b) Offer the iPhone on a "rental" basis, but still 2-year contracts, for those that always want to upgrade every year. Get your phone this year, and then if you want to upgrade again next year, you can do so at the subsidized price, but you have to turn in your 3GS for the 4GS(or whatever next year's model will be called)

Neither will happen, but there must be something better, from both a business model and customer service standpoint, than what's happening now,

 

[kevino2]

Activation Wait

FedEx just delivered my 16 gb iPhone 3G S. I plugged it in to begin activation and after about 3 minutes it returns a message saying that, due the volume of requests for activation, it may take up to 48 hours - they will send me an email once it has been activated.

 

[emaja]

I plugged it in to begin activation and after about 3 minutes it returns a message saying that, due the volume of requests for activation, it may take up to 48 hours - they will send me an email once it has been activated.

Keep trying. My local AT&T store had an issue with the first attempt, but the second went through just fine.

 

[manu chao]

Even if Apple does exceed sales of the 3G launch, I think it would be interesting to see what the sales COULD have been had they allowed all iPhone users to upgrade.

Assuming you are one of those users not yet eligible:
You mean if AT&T had written off half of the loan they gave you when you bought your iPhone 3G?
You bought a $700 phone for $300, ie, AT&T gave you a $400 loan which you are paying off over the course of two years. Now you want to stop paying back the loan after one year and get a new loan for a new phone instead? Good luck with that.

 

[voncarlo]

Went to the apple store in chandler AZ (fashion center mall) today around 7:30am. lines were pretty short. apple employees were more enthusiastic than ever - my god they must spike their coffee with ecstasy and speed

i asked two employees how many they got in total and neither could answer - they both said "a lot" in a manner implying it was a giant number. I said "hundreds?" and one guy said "oh, yes".

Bottom line is that I bet you could walk in 5 minutes before close tonight and still get one.

 

[brownieguy19]

People might call At&t stupid...but clearly they are not losing anytime soon.

I got my 3GS this morning from FedEx and I haven't activated it yet, and I'm wondering what would happen if I just stuck my old SIM Card in my new iPhone 3GS. Did anybody try this last year?

 

[chr1s60]

Assuming you are one of those users not yet eligible:
You mean if AT&T had written off half of the loan they gave you when you bought your iPhone 3G?
You bought a $700 phone for $300, ie, AT&T gave you a $400 loan which you are paying off over the course of two years. Now you want to stop paying back the loan after one year and get a new loan for a new phone instead? Good luck with that.

I am not eligible for the cheap upgrade, but I am getting my 3GS for $199 through a friend anyway so I have no problem with AT&T. You really think AT&T paid $700 for that phone they sold me for $200 last year? Haha, you probably think it really costs them $30 per person to provide that data coverage too. AT&T and all other phone companies make back any and all money they "loan" you within months of starting the contract. The whole 2 year deal is really just there to make them more and more money. Based off this you probably have nothing against raising gas prices either because you think the oil companies are just covering their costs and barely turning a profit.

 

[emaja]

People might call At&t stupid...but clearly they are not losing anytime soon.

I got my 3GS this morning from FedEx and I haven't activated it yet, and I'm wondering what would happen if I just stuck my old SIM Card in my new iPhone 3GS. Did anybody try this last year?

That is exactly what AT&T did for me at my local store. I did activate a new line, so my case might be different.