Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

It will cost me $800 to get an iPhone?

nfl46 said:
Oh, by the way, I wouldn't pay the $500 deposit, unless you're rich and don't mind spending $800 for iPhone.
Click to expand...

A deposit isn't an extra cost for the phone. It's money you give them that you eventually get back... Either through it being used to pay your first bills, or as a refund later on.

AT&T isn't jacking the price of the phone up an additional $500, unless you choose to cancel the account and run off.
 
nfl46 said:
Oh, by the way, I wouldn't pay the $500 deposit, unless you're rich and don't mind spending $800 for iPhone.
Click to expand...

You're not paying $800 for a phone. You're giving AT&T an interest free loan for 5/8ths of that, which they will pay you back some number of months later if you pay your phone bill on time, and they don't go bankrupt first.

What's the NPV on the interest on a $500 loan to a big corp. these days?
 
ppc750fx said:
Why should it be illegal? They're allowed to charge whatever they like for the phone, either in the form of a sticker price or a deposit. If you don't like it, nobody's forcing you to buy the phone, or even to use AT&T.
Click to expand...

It should be illegal because it's stopping him from getting what he wants even if he can't afford it or has bad credit. Don't you know that no one should ever stop you from getting what you want even if you have no credit or if it's beyond your means? Let the corporation take a hit!



/sarcasm
 
samiwas said:
It should be illegal because it's stopping him from getting what he wants even if he can't afford it or has bad credit. Don't you know that no one should ever stop you from getting what you want even if you have no credit or if it's beyond your means? Let the corporation take a hit!



/sarcasm
Click to expand...

Perhaps the problem is that he has no credit. How do you know he can't afford it?

I love when people get judged by other people who don't know them and know absolutely nothing about them. Awesomeness internetz!
 
lostprophet894 said:
Perhaps the problem is that he has no credit. How do you know he can't afford it?

I love when people get judged by other people who don't know them and know absolutely nothing about them. Awesomeness internetz!
Click to expand...

Did you not see the word "OR" in my post? As in "...even if he can't afford it OR has bad credit."

I love when people get judged by other people who don't read a post correctly.

And perhaps I'm tired of people whining about how some luxury item they want costs too much or they are being hassled because they have credit problems. And, even worse, saying it should be illegal for a company to protect itself against people with bad credit. Ugh.
 
samiwas said:
Did you not see the word "OR" in my post? As in "...even if he can't afford it OR has bad credit."

I love when people get judged by other people who don't read a post correctly.
Click to expand...

Really? Does the context change when you replace "OR" with something else? You're still judging the guy whether it says "OR" or "AND" or whatever else you may find to stick in there.

So let me rephrase. How do you know he can't afford it OR has bad credit?

Better? :rolleyes:
 
Wow, another thread turned childish.
Its simple, these are the rules.
If you dont like them, or cant afford it or dont want to put a deposit simply dont buy it.
Whinning about it here and saying nonsense like deposits should be illegal is worthless.
 
If ATT is going to be that ridiculous, just get your ATT Sim and pick up an unlocked iphone on ebay for like 350-400.
 
Applejuiced said:
Wow, another thread turned childish.
Its simple, these are the rules.
If you dont like them, or cant afford it or dont want to put a deposit simply dont buy it.
Whinning about it here and saying nonsense like deposits should be illegal is worthless.
Click to expand...

Whinning about whiners is also whinning.
 
$800?
I would have got that the second I heard of it, honestly in Europe that is cheap for the iPhone, in Switzerland it was about $1000 and I got mine in Ukraine for $1033.
 
Unless you have like a few loans, you shouldn't need a deposit; however if they say you need to make a deposit, then it means you do.

Though $500 does seem a bit high; you shouldn't add the $300 on, since that's not part of the deposit.
 
That used to be me...My credit was in the high 400's. Two years later its almost in the 600's(589).
 
I don't know if this would work but you could try it. Go and get a really cheap phone and plan from at&t. Like the 450 minutes for $39.99 a month and get one of the free phones that they offer. Buy an iPhone off of craigslist or ebay. Switch the sim cards then add data and messaging to your plan. Anybody think that could work?
 
I dont understand the problem.

You DO NOT have credit. AT&T doesnt know your credit worthiness. Because of this they do not want to subsidize the iPhone or extend a contract to you without money for collateral. Its like getting a secured credit card. You are NOT buying the iPhone for $800, you're buying it for $300 and putting the $500 on hold.

Like what the other guy said, he used to work for AT&T and you accumulate interest. Think of it as a savings account or certificate of deposit. If you dont have an extra $500 in the savings perhaps you SHOULDN'T get an iPhone?
 
Yeah I had to do this same thing in 2007 for the first iPhone.. I was 18 and had no credit, and my parents would not co-sign. And since back then the iphone cost $599 for an 8GB when it was released, it cost me just over $1100. The good note was the following year I received the $500 back and bought the 3G with money I had forgot about.. It was a steep price but the following year I was definitely happy I had done it.
 
aFo said:
If ATT is going to be that ridiculous, just get your ATT Sim and pick up an unlocked iphone on ebay for like 350-400.
Click to expand...

Yeah, that should work fine. I put my AT&T sim from my cheapo LG into a friends iPhone and it worked great. However---- Visual Voicemail won't work and you better be damn careful about how much 3G data you use because you will still be on your old plan and not the iPhone one.
 
Sparky9292 said:
Yeah, that should work fine. I put my AT&T sim from my cheapo LG into a friends iPhone and it worked great. However---- Visual Voicemail won't work and you better be damn careful about how much 3G data you use because you will still be on your old plan and not the iPhone one.
Click to expand...

I thought the reason he has to pay the $500 +$299 was because he did not have a plan with them.. The $500 deposit is to open an account and line with AT&T. Otherwise he would be able to just buy one off of e-bay.
 
RTiii320 said:
I thought the reason he has to pay the $500 +$299 was because he did not have a plan with them.. The $500 deposit is to open an account and line with AT&T. Otherwise he would be able to just buy one off of e-bay.
Click to expand...

Nope. The $500 deposit is because he has a low credit score, and AT&T things he's too much of a risk for non-payment. They need something to prevent them from taking a loss if he start to fail to pay his bills. The $500 will cover that eventuality. After a period of time he'll get the $500 back from AT&T once his credit score improves.

It's just like renting an apartment where the landlord requires a security deposit, first and last month's rent in advance. That way if you suddenly move out, or move out with damage to the place, their costs are covered. If you move out under good terms and the place isn't damaged, they pay you back your security deposit.
 
I used to sell phones for AT&T back in the 90's and there were two deposit points $200 for no or slightly bad credit and $1000 for total deadbeats.

You'd be surprised how often some scumbag would come back with a fist full of $20's and leave the deposit.

They do pay interest on the money so it's not all bad.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back