On the iPod Announcements...

[JMax1]

Brilliant job giving older buyers $100 back because I know whatever I buy with it will be over $100 (I'm thinking the bluetooth headset or tv dock and probably something else totaling over $100).

I bet Apple will actually MAKE money off of the refunds/gift cards to iPhoners.

BIG thumbs up to

::edit:: Please keep talk related to iPhone, not about the blogger's style of writing. If you want to make comments about somebody's thoughts on market dynamics, go join forums for the Economist.

 

[pdxdeano]

I bought my iPhone on August 21st as a birthday present for myself so was stunned when just 15 days later Apple dropped the price $200. However after some careful thought I realized it wasn't Apples fault it was my moms for not having me on the 22nd.


Seriously, so what if Apple dropped the price? I still have the best cell phone on the market and now I get a $100 gift card to put towards iLife and iWork
'08

 

[Postal]

Katie,

Most of us who purchased this phone (and some of us bought more then one!) did so with the understanding we would be early adopters. The price drop only 68 days later on a electronic device is unheard of. The price of gas, milk or any other of those horrible analogies can't be taken seriously, because everyone fully expects the price of those things to fluctuate. Not the iPhone. This was a shock to everyone who actually PAID for their phones. Your age really shines through in your last post, and worldly wisdom from a 19 year old school girl with very minor life experience shouldn't lecture to people who actually worked and saved their money for this purchase.

Not trying to be a jerk, just stating an opinion.

Hey, I'm out of university and working to earn the phone myself, and I would still believe that people shouldn't expect price compensation past the 14-day period. Buying products is effectively a contract! If you buy at $599, you agreed at the time that the price was acceptable. And what would the cut-off have been if you think you're owed money back? Three full months? Four months? It's not quite as simple as some here make it out to be.

 

[DrBunsenHoneyde]

Your caned rant is pathetic. All you have done is reiterate a bunch of non-relevant analogies. Yes the price of gas, milk and etc fluctuates, but not the cost of Apple products. I can't remember the last time Apple up and dropped the price of any of their premium products after two month.

Plus if you had shelled out $600 of your own hard earned money you may be in a different boat. Take your head out of Apples holly butt and join the rest of us on terra firma. What was done was just plain wrong, and Steve's (I wipe my ass with your $200) Jobs has obviously realized this.

P.S. I forgot to address your New car fact When I buy a new car I expect the depreciation. it's not a big secret unlike the iPhone price reduction.

actually the car depreciation thing is expected just like technical products, look at how fast technology prices drop, ok 200 dollars was alot but it shows the drop in the technology prices and the loyalty of apple to give some of that money back to you. stop your winging and just be glad (if you did get one) that you could. The rest of the world had no option and still doesnt. Everything depreciates in value especially technology get used to it.

 

[greenBabe]

Holy Mac!

The whining about the whining is even more annoying than the whining was. And that's a stretch ...

 

[TwoSyllables]

I for one AM happy about the $100 gift card.

But to say we had to reason to be upset about the price drop? Keep in mind, a lot of us didn't buy the phone to be the coolest kid on the block. I REALLY didn't care. I'm 21 and bought a brand new Mustang a few weeks earlier. I was all blinged out. That said, I REALLY couldn't afford a $500 phone (especially because of the car), but I saved up for 6th months so the iPhone didn't land me in the poor house. I bought it because I respected Apple as a company and all my previous purchases from them held their value enough that I didn't expect it to be worth it to wait. If I could buy a new Macbook Pro in 2 months for $670 off, I'd certainly wait that release out.

And by the way, I'm well aware that the car will depriciate about 33% in the first year, but I knew that before I bought it. Even with the $100 gift card, I most certainly will NEVER buy another new Apple product. I no longer expect their products to hold their value any longer than a Sony or Dell product.


AANNNDD Miss Thang, you didn't even pay for the phone. You're no old hag either. Don't EVEN try to tell to tell me you wouldn't be pissed if you were in our shoes!

 

[kuphd]

Here's the real problem...

Those of you complaining are really just irritated that you were dumb enough to buy brand new technology and paid way too much for it. Guess what...that's the way it works. 1GB hard drives used to cost $500. Blu-ray DVD burners cost $699 two months ago and now they're down to $499. Hmmm...$200 price drop in two months. Sound familiar? And I don't see Panasonic issuing gift cards to folks who bought the new technology two months ago.

And for those of you who think that the iPhone isn't new technology, tell me one other phone out there that does what it does. You can't because there aren't any.

So, here's what needs to happen. You fools who just had to rush out to get the iPhone when it first came out so you could look cool and brag to your friends, get over it. Basically what you spent the extra $200 for is bragging rights. Now you're just mad because all those people who didn't have the money or were smart enough to not buy one right away can now get one and are just as cool as you.

My advice, don't ever buy anything remotely related to technology again, because you're going to be disappointed when something better and cheaper comes out six months later.

 

[jsw]

I can't remember the last time Apple up and dropped the price of any of their premium products after two months.

And the previous Apple cell phone product was... what now? This is an entirely different market. And you might want to ask last-gen I-had-it-for-a-few-weeks-and-Apple-switched-to-Intel iMac owners about rapid depreciation of a product.

Take your head out of Apples holly butt and join the rest of us on terra firma. What was done was just plain wrong, and Steve's (I wipe my ass with your $200) Jobs has obviously realized this.

First, I think Apple's butt is made of rose petals, not holly, but I'm not sure. You could be right about it. Second, price reductions are wrong? Um, OK. They entered a new market and decided to change the pricing after watching sales. Wow. A new concept for business, indeed.

This was a deliberately, clearly calculated effort to make some extra cash off of the very people that made Apple what it is today.

What product is sold by Apple, or, indeed, virtually any business, which is not a deliberate effort to make money? Which businesses say to themselves "Oh, we could sell this for X dollars, but, just because we're nice, we'll sell it for X/2 dollars." They thought they could sell a million at $599. They didn't, so they dropped the price.

Most electronics do not go down 33% in price after only 60 some days. I expected the iPhone price cut eventually, I even talked about it with people around me in line. Not one of us predicted a $200 drop in the beginning of September. Most of us expected it around the start of 2008 and even then we only expect $100 drops.

So, of course, Apple should be held accountable for not doing what you predicted they'd do. I don't think it was a slap in the face. I think they tried to make an extra $200 per phone, saw the sales not be as strong as they anticipated, and dropped the price.

The Motorola Razr was $499 the day it launched (16 nov 2004) On Jan 22, 2005.. you could get it for $339. What's that? A $160 price drop in 2 months.

Thank you thank you thank you. But, you know, Apple dropped prices by 33.3%. The RAZR was only, like, a 32% drop. So, clearly, it wasn't nearly as bad.

"I'll take my $100 gift card and get some Arn-approved iPhone accessories to play with."

If you felt you paid a fair price don't take the $100 gift card, hypocrite.

That's completely ridiculous. Feeling one paid a fair price and accepting a proffered gift card are not in any way hypocritical. Unless, perhaps, you could explain why it's hypocritical. I'd love to see that.

Yes I have bought a cell phone before. The iPhone is not typical for the cellular market. At some time or another you can expect a subsidy for the phone this was never the case for the iPhone.

There are many, many phones for which there's no subsidy. The subsidies usually kick in in the older or 2nd and 3rd tier products, to draw people in to buy the contracts. Just consider the $200 off a "subsidy".

You need to stop posting. Both of the things you mentioned have no relevance what so ever.

They were both completely relevant.

No that is called depreciation. If you go back to buy another car the price will be the same for a new one.

Two months later? No. The sticker will be the same. The price won't.

Why anyone would continue to read this worthless blog is beyond me...

Which, of course, begs the question: how were you able to reply in this thread if you don't read the blog?

Even with the $100 gift card, I most certainly will NEVER buy another new Apple product. I no longer expect their products to hold their value any longer than a Sony or Dell product.

Yes. Their very first entry into a vastly competitive massive multi-billion-dollar market should clearly be used as proof their practices in other areas will change radically.

AANNNDD Miss Thang, you didn't even pay for the phone. You're no old hag either. Don't EVEN try to tell to tell me you wouldn't be pissed if you were in our shoes!

I paid for a new iPhone on day one. I also work for a cell phone manufacturer, and I understand the dynamics of the market. The scale of the price cut surprises me a bit, but not really. Am I pissed? No. Because I assumed something similar would happen in a reasonably similar time frame if sales didn't meet expectations. So I bought one, and I'm not pissed. As to whether KT would be? She's pretty savvy about electronic pricing and updates. I'm pretty sure she'd be disappointed, not pissed, in a price drop.

 

[milo]

Your caned rant is pathetic. All you have done is reiterate a bunch of non-relevant analogies. Yes the price of gas, milk and etc fluctuates, but not the cost of Apple products. I can't remember the last time Apple up and dropped the price of any of their premium products after two month.

Plus if you had shelled out $600 of your own hard earned money you may be in a different boat. Take your head out of Apples holly butt and join the rest of us on terra firma. What was done was just plain wrong, and Steve's (I wipe my ass with your $200) Jobs has obviously realized this.

P.S. I forgot to address your New car fact When I buy a new car I expect the depreciation. it's not a big secret unlike the iPhone price reduction.

Get a clue, apple has already offered $100 back.

If you're going to do pointless, redundant bitching and moaning, at least keep up to date with the situation.

 

[racemize]

"Life isn't fair" isn't an argument for disliking when it is. Expecting bad outcomes is one thing, justifying poor actions with that expectation is a fallacy. (This applies to your disreputable ticket salesman). I mean really, that's just weak.

I will say I was on the fence about rebates / not rebates. I'm quite happy with what Steve decided to do.

 

[GTiPhone]

I spent about 20 minutes on that article, really trying to give you the benefit of the doubt, but I concluded that you have absolutely no clue how to make accurate analogies, or how to make any sense while . Your logic and reasoning is on par with Peter Griffin.

If you think this situation is no differernt from any other old consumer product price change, you throughouly need your head examined.

Apple is offering their $100 credit for one reason. They have to. They know how completely over the line this decision was and how many people it offended..people who they want to still show up for the next break through product launch. I can guarantee you NOW though, I will never be such an ealer adopter of an Apple product again. Granted I love everything about my iPhone and would not want to be without it, (and yes, secretly we have all gotten our money's worth out of this device with or without any credit), but I will never turn out to buy an expensive new product on launch. I figured for the iPhone it would be worth it, and it has been............that doesn't mean Apple can turn around and punish us for being the ones who made them look good on the 29th of June.

 

[whateverandever]

I think this post was entirely uncalled for in the blog... considering the FIRST blog post had this:

"MacRumors has graciously agreed to provide the iPhone and service for me in exchange for blogging about it."

So basically, someone who was COMPLETELY unaffected by the price drop decided to justify it to everyone.

Good job. I'm glad you can relate.

 

[GTiPhone]

And the previous Apple cell phone product was... what now? This is an entirely different market. And you might want to ask last-gen I-had-it-for-a-few-weeks-and-Apple-switched-to-Intel iMac owners about rapid depreciation of a product.
First, I think Apple's butt is made of rose petals, not holly, but I'm not sure. You could be right about it. Second, price reductions are wrong? Um, OK. They entered a new market and decided to change the pricing after watching sales. Wow. A new concept for business, indeed.
What product is sold by Apple, or, indeed, virtually any business, which is not a deliberate effort to make money? Which businesses say to themselves "Oh, we could sell this for X dollars, but, just because we're nice, we'll sell it for X/2 dollars." They thought they could sell a million at $599. They didn't, so they dropped the price.
So, of course, Apple should be held accountable for not doing what you predicted they'd do. I don't think it was a slap in the face. I think they tried to make an extra $200 per phone, saw the sales not be as strong as they anticipated, and dropped the price.

Thank you thank you thank you. But, you know, Apple dropped prices by 33.3%. The RAZR was only, like, a 32% drop. So, clearly, it wasn't nearly as bad.
That's completely ridiculous. Feeling one paid a fair price and accepting a proffered gift card are not in any way hypocritical. Unless, perhaps, you could explain why it's hypocritical. I'd love to see that.
There are many, many phones for which there's no subsidy. The subsidies usually kick in in the older or 2nd and 3rd tier products, to draw people in to buy the contracts. Just consider the $200 off a "subsidy".

They were both completely relevant.
Two months later? No. The sticker will be the same. The price won't.

Which, of course, begs the question: how were you able to reply in this thread if you don't read the blog?
Yes. Their very first entry into a vastly competitive massive multi-billion-dollar market should clearly be used as proof their practices in other areas will change radically.
I paid for a new iPhone on day one. I also work for a cell phone manufacturer, and I understand the dynamics of the market. The scale of the price cut surprises me a bit, but not really. Am I pissed? No. Because I assumed something similar would happen in a reasonably similar time frame if sales didn't meet expectations. So I bought one, and I'm not pissed. As to whether KT would be? She's pretty savvy about electronic pricing and updates. I'm pretty sure she'd be disappointed, not pissed, in a price drop.

Aside from the article that started this thread, this is some of the most nausiating Apple ass kissing I have ever seen. The scale surprises you a little bit?! Please. Get with reality already.

This reduction was: Extreme, Unprecedented, Uncommon, and so early they may as well have done it on June 30th.

Tell me, would you still feel the same way if they had done this on June 30th? No, you'd be up in arms little crazy internet author writing about the biggest scam in history.........what if it happened 15 days after iDay, just outside of the 14 day price protection, how you feel then?!?!

Its been 68 days. You must have short term memory issues if you do not recognize this as being an INSANELY short amount of time from launch. I mean, come on.

All else considered, Steve Jobs went and offered a big chunk of money to a lot of people because he knows what they did was wrong. How does it make you look to continue to defend the original decision that was determined to be crude and completely inappropriate????

It makes you look like words that would get me banned.

 

[Blue Velvet]

What staggers me is why people have to be so unnecessarily rude to Katie.

Sure, you might not like her blog or what she says, or you might be annoyed about the whole iPhone price issue... but some of you are just being personally nasty for no reason at all, except for the reason that you feel you can, typing from your mother's basement or wherever.

It's just really saddening to see so much bitterness out there directed at a 19 year old girl who speaks her mind. Take a good hard look at yourselves before you feel inclined to post, because for some of you, it doesn't make you look good at all. And if you don't like her blog, spare yourself the drama and just don't read it; it's that simple.

Just my personal thoughts... and not an official MR mod stance or whatever.

 

[racemize]

What staggers me is why people have to be so unnecessarily rude to Katie.

Sure, you might not like her blog or what she says, or you might be annoyed about the whole iPhone price issue... but some of you are just being personally nasty for no reason at all, except for the reason that you feel you can, typing from your mother's basement or wherever.

It's just really saddening to see so much bitterness out there directed at a 19 year old girl who speaks her mind. Take a good hard look at yourselves before you feel inclined to post, because for some of you, it doesn't make you look good at all. And if you don't like her blog, spare yourself the drama and just don't read it; it's that simple.

Just my personal thoughts... and not an official MR mod stance or whatever.

not so much in defense of personal attacks, I will say that the blog did seem a bit offensive to me. At least in my reading, the tone of the article indicated (to me) that anyone who was complaining didn't understand basic principles of life. That and the poor analogies were enough to make me respond. (However, I did not intend my response as a personal attack, merely an attack on certain types of arguments, and their use). I don't mind opinions, and, as I said before, I wasn't sure if rebates were necessary. However, this particular post seemed out of line of the intent of the blog (i.e., related to her opinion on people who whined rather than how the phone has impacted her daily life). It appears that it struck other readers in a similar fashion as well.

 

[whateverandever]

What staggers me is why people have to be so unnecessarily rude to Katie.

...
except for the reason that you feel you can, typing from your mother's basement or wherever.

Ironic. A post that is upset about people belittling Katie at the same time takes a jab at other people. I remember something about a pot and a kettle...

woah... Someone's jeaaaaalllloous!

I was pointing out her distance from the subject matter she was commenting on. But I'm glad you took a break from watching Spongebob Squarepants to reply to my comment.

 

[JDC55]

What staggers me is why people have to be so unnecessarily rude to Katie.

Sure, you might not like her blog or what she says, or you might be annoyed about the whole iPhone price issue... but some of you are just being personally nasty for no reason at all, except for the reason that you feel you can, typing from your mother's basement or wherever.

It's just really saddening to see so much bitterness out there directed at a 19 year old girl who speaks her mind. Take a good hard look at yourselves before you feel inclined to post, because for some of you, it doesn't make you look good at all. And if you don't like her blog, spare yourself the drama and just don't read it; it's that simple.

Just my personal thoughts... and not an official MR mod stance or whatever.

Again welcome to the real world (or should i say e-world) If you are going to post on an internet forum you should be prepared to get e-feelings hurt. If you can't stand the heat stay out of the kitchen.

 

[Rower_CPU]

Again welcome to the real world (or should i say e-world) If you are going to post on an internet forum you should be prepared to get e-feelings hurt. If you can't stand the heat stay out of the kitchen.

And welcome to the MacRumors community - since you're new here and have strong opinions about what sort of behavior is appropriate in online forums, I suggest you read our site rules and familiarize yourself with what's considered respectful dialogue here.

Thanks

 

[Blue Velvet]

Again welcome to the real world (or should i say e-world) If you are going to post on an internet forum you should be prepared to get e-feelings hurt. If you can't stand the heat stay out of the kitchen.

Excuse me? There's no excuse for continued incivility and it's something I take a great pleasure in by deleting and banning those when I see it here on MacRumors.

But enough on this matter. Any further off-topic or personally-directed insulting posts at anyone will be deleted. Thanks.

 

[stompy]

And welcome to the MacRumors community - since you're new here and have strong opinions about what sort of behavior is appropriate in online forums, I suggest you read our site rules and familiarize yourself with what's considered respectful dialogue here.

Thanks

No, thank you.

 

[JMax1]

I was pointing out her distance from the subject matter she was commenting on. But I'm glad you took a break from watching Spongebob Squarepants to reply to my comment.

You actually made me laugh at myself. I went ahead and withdrew my previous comment because I see your point.

 

[bretm]

Your caned rant is pathetic. All you have done is reiterate a bunch of non-relevant analogies. Yes the price of gas, milk and etc fluctuates, but not the cost of Apple products. I can't remember the last time Apple up and dropped the price of any of their premium products after two month.

Plus if you had shelled out $600 of your own hard earned money you may be in a different boat. Take your head out of Apples holly butt and join the rest of us on terra firma. What was done was just plain wrong, and Steve's (I wipe my ass with your $200) Jobs has obviously realized this.

P.S. I forgot to address your New car fact When I buy a new car I expect the depreciation. it's not a big secret unlike the iPhone price reduction.

I remember the last time apple lowered the price that quickly. Aperture. They dropped the price 40% in 2 months. They promptly reimbursed the $200 to ALL purchasers by means of a gift card. This is why I wasn't worried about being an early adopter. Because apple has shown they take care of early adopteds when they realize the original price was borderline gouging. Legal or not - I would've had a bad taste in my mouthif apple hadn't returned some money. Call it what you want, but that's the way it is. People feel cheated. People feel cheated instinctively. Screw econ 101. They know when something is fishy. And these are the people buying apple in the future.

 

[Lyle]

And welcome to the MacRumors community - since you're new here and have strong opinions about what sort of behavior is appropriate in online forums, I suggest you read our site rules and familiarize yourself with what's considered respectful dialogue here.

Thanks

Thanks, Rower (and BV). I was hoping a moderator had stepped in at some point in this thread.

 

[NewSc2]

Sorry Katie... I've labored through your previous blog posts (flashlight?), but this one I had to comment on.

I don't think your conclusion and explanation of the price drop is really representative of what I've come to expect from arn and longofest and MacRumors as a whole. I bought my iPhone 20 days ago (21 now) and am collecting my money back from my credit card company.

There is a difference in commodities, investments, everyday products like gasoline (do you think I'll really wait 2 weeks to fill up my gas tank?), and other companies gadgets, from Apple products. Many people wouldn't give two cents about a RAZR price drop, because it's Motorola. This is Apple and we know our Powerbooks, iPods, and Apple Cinema Displays hold their value, much better than Dells and Sonys. If I bought a Powerbook 3 years ago, knowing it would drop to $0 (like RAZRs have) in 3 years, I wouldn't have paid $2500 for one. We've come to trust Apple as a luxury electronic goods manufacturer, with an emphasis on luxury (they look good, work great, and are built well). Used Apple products command top dollar.

So when my iPhone, which was purchased after a few months of savings, suddenly dropped $200 in price, it dropped $200 in value too. I would have paid $800 for it, or maybe even $1000, but I paid $600. Now I can't sell it for $500, as I could have just a few days ago. The total value of everything I own just went down by $200, with the word coming from Steve Jobs. I was pretty shocked.

You pay a price when you deal with a shady eBay seller or buy tickets off Craigslist. And I personally have never gotten shafted with promises of "great seats." But this is Apple. When I buy a suit from Bloomingdales and it rips a few days after I take it home, causing a $200 repair charge, I bring it back to Bloomingdales and ask them for a refund. That's the price I pay for when I buy a $1000 suit, instead of a $99 one.

I didn't expect it from Apple, and now I know to be more cautious. This is a really bad move on Steve Jobs' part, as I'll be less inclined to drop a price premium on Apple in the future. What he should've done was announce the $100 price credit alongside the $200 price drop. It would've been lauded (and Apple wouldn't have been picked apart like it has been), and it would've had the exact same financial results for the company. As an Economics graduate -- we didn't just buy an iPhone for its UI or looks, something inside us also gave it a monetary value and decided the price was justified. Now that price has changed and our monetary value has just gone outta whack (I paid $200 to have this for 20 days?!?)

And I've come to love my credit card company for helping me through my financial loss. I'm more inclined to buy through them now.

Anyway Katie, I really think you should pick your stances more carefully. This is a really sensitive topic and bringing up touchy or useless points belongs on Fox News, not on MacRumors.

 

[matticus008]

There is a difference [...between] other companies gadgets [and] Apple products.

No, there's not. There is no guarantee and no obligation on the part of the seller to sustain your "investment." Once you purchase it, you assume the risk of it being worth $0 the next day. It could be stolen or destroyed, or it could be rendered utterly obsolete. There's a return/adjustment window for some amount of insulation from the market, but it's an artificial force.

If I bought a Powerbook 3 years ago, knowing it would drop to $0 (like RAZRs have) in 3 years, I wouldn't have paid $2500 for one.

Then you wouldn't have owned one, and someone else would have bought it. The resale value has no impact on price or performance at the time of purchase. The computer will last as long and perform as well whether it's worth $10 or $1000. High resale value is a nice perk and nothing more. Lots of people factor it in, but it's entirely speculative. You're taking a gamble, and it's no one's responsibility but your own. If it's not worth the price on the day you're purchasing it, you're making a mistake in buying it.

So when my iPhone, which was purchased after a few months of savings, suddenly dropped $200 in price, it dropped $200 in value too. I would have paid $800 for it, or maybe even $1000, but I paid $600. Now I can't sell it for $500, as I could have just a few days ago.

Welcome to market speculation. You might be annoyed about the future playing out differently than you anticipated, but it's no one's responsibility but your own.

Products are sold for a price at a specific point in time. The reality is that you don't know what is going to happen tomorrow. You don't have any control over the future. Learn to live with it. That risk calculation might not pay off, and that's something that must be factored in.

When I buy a suit from Bloomingdales and it rips a few days after I take it home, causing a $200 repair charge, I bring it back to Bloomingdales and ask them for a refund.

If your iPhone breaks, take it in. That's what a warranty is for.

Now that price has changed and our monetary value has just gone outta whack (I paid $200 to have this for 20 days?!?)

You have a degree in economics and you're comfortable with that statement? Give me a break. You bore the risk and you lost.

This has nothing to do with economic losses or business decisions. You're upset, you're to blame for putting yourself in the situation, and you've decided to complain about it to exorcise your frustration with yourself and put it on a third party. This is why we don't live in a democracy.