randomrazor
macrumors member
my cashing is coming in form of a check.... particularly $600 check from the government ha! It is like the government is giving me a free iPhone ... thanks bush for doing one good thing for me 🙂
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T-Mobile Germany Offering Subsidized iPhones with 2 Year Contract
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my cashing is coming in form of a check.... particularly $600 check from the government ha! It is like the government is giving me a free iPhone ... thanks bush for doing one good thing for me 🙂
BongoBanger
macrumors 68000
Of course, they could also be doing it because it just isn't selling as it isn't in France...
http://www.macworld.co.uk/news/index.cfm?newsid=20889
http://www.macworld.co.uk/news/index.cfm?newsid=20889
not selling "over there"
My point is: You Euro-types are too smart to pay retail in your own country when you can get an iphone some dude purchased in NYC, USA, then unlocked and exported, and which now has a sim card that can be swapped to the carrier of your choice at a much more affordable rate. How else do you explain all the iphones you see on your streets?
Steve must change the business model thusly: 1) Charge gobs of cash up front. 2) Offer big rebate for service contract, and an affordably-priced contract, at that.
By the way, as further evidence for my supposition, let me point out that they say the US online store has plenty of phones, yet the brick stores are out. This is because the online store ships to US addresses, making the exporters traceable. This is all being done to discourage the above practice
My point is: You Euro-types are too smart to pay retail in your own country when you can get an iphone some dude purchased in NYC, USA, then unlocked and exported, and which now has a sim card that can be swapped to the carrier of your choice at a much more affordable rate. How else do you explain all the iphones you see on your streets?
Steve must change the business model thusly: 1) Charge gobs of cash up front. 2) Offer big rebate for service contract, and an affordably-priced contract, at that.
By the way, as further evidence for my supposition, let me point out that they say the US online store has plenty of phones, yet the brick stores are out. This is because the online store ships to US addresses, making the exporters traceable. This is all being done to discourage the above practice
nja247
macrumors regular
money is never free. either you'll pay it back with interest eventually or something will get cut! unless they're just "printing money" (let's hope not)
Really, the US is giving $600 to everyone?
Surely it's better to lower taxes, thereby not taking the $600 off people in the first place, rather than go through the administrative cost of sending it back to them.
I wonder what the economists think... I'd have thought flooding the market with money like that would drive inflation through the roof.
Surely it's better to lower taxes, thereby not taking the $600 off people in the first place, rather than go through the administrative cost of sending it back to them.
I wonder what the economists think... I'd have thought flooding the market with money like that would drive inflation through the roof.
New Models
This price change by T-Mobile will be followed by other carriers. It is because the 16GB model with EDGE will stick around after the new models are announced. It's price will most likely drop to $299, while the 3G models will fill the $399 & $499 slots. I would expect to see a jump in iPod Touch capacity around that time as well.
This price change by T-Mobile will be followed by other carriers. It is because the 16GB model with EDGE will stick around after the new models are announced. It's price will most likely drop to $299, while the 3G models will fill the $399 & $499 slots. I would expect to see a jump in iPod Touch capacity around that time as well.
peterdevries
macrumors 68040
Actually I agree on this. T-Mobile definitely rips of customers, and this not only in their mobile segment. I have more than a few bad experiences with them during the time I still lived in Germany.😡
Another reason is probably that T-Com is such an incredibly inefficient, bloated and badly managed company that their services bound to be more expensive.
I can see why Apple went with T-mobile, since they have a very large network in Europe, and thus do not have to make separate IPhone agreements in each European country. But Vodafone would from the customer viewpoint have been a better partner (although they are not that great either)..🙁
Tomorrow you will see that o2 have also begun to subsidise their 8gb to get rid of the damn things..
3G is coming sooner than we think, hints keep flying at us.... soon we will be able to actually be able to enjoy the worlds best browser, safari, wherever we are in the world, if the networks get off their butt and roll out 3G coverage..
Or otherwise i will join 3 (Three) in the UK.....
3G is coming sooner than we think, hints keep flying at us.... soon we will be able to actually be able to enjoy the worlds best browser, safari, wherever we are in the world, if the networks get off their butt and roll out 3G coverage..
Or otherwise i will join 3 (Three) in the UK.....
sleepingworker
macrumors 6502a
One of the rationales - as it was explained to me - for locking customers into contracts with their cell phone providers was to balance the cost of heavily discounted handsets. So, signing a contract for a discounted iPhone in Germany seems fair and reasonable. What doesn't is having to pay a premium price for a handset and then be locked in a contract for two years with no choice of different providers. If feels monopolistic in its intent and execution IMHO.
In fact that's the way it's always worked in europe.
We don't mind contracts as long as we get something in return - a cheaper phone (often free on the higher contracts).
To pay full price *and* be locked in is fairly unique.
randomrazor
macrumors member
Sadly I agree... but why not buy an iPhone with it... 🙂 i don't support the "rebate check" but if everyone in the US is going to spend their check... then i have to too. yeah the cost and inflation is a concern i have ... but "it is to help stimulate the economy"... something like that i guess
That obvious because the offer only appllies to the 8GB phone. If the puropse of promotion was to get customers to sign up for the service they would have a deal on both versions of the phone. It is pretty clear they just do not want to be stuck with stacks of un-sold phones that no one will want after the new phone come out
randomrazor
macrumors member
I don't mind T-mobile here in the States but it is at&t that i am worried about when i switch over when i purchase the iPhone
Damn right they have been. Because T-Mobile is ripping people off.
People in England think they're getting a raw deal. Hell, even you guys on AT&T do (to a certain extent). Nothing compares to the terrible pricing in Germany.
(OK, except perhaps the iPhone in Ireland... I don't know why they even bothered with that)
CmdrLaForge
macrumors 601
o2 Germany sells me 5 GB data for 21.75 /month. No included minutes and text, though. That would be the perfect contract for an iPhone for me.
Deutsche Telekom AG (the name of the company that owns the T-* brands) was the monopolist government telecommunications company. Further questions?
(At least, for mobile services, there is real competition. In rural areas, DTAG often is the only provider for landlines. And of course, competitors have to rent the last mile from DTAG.)
When the iPhone was released, it probably was discounted. It's just that the discount was not granted by the provider but by Apple.
-----
But now let's speculate a bit what this move of T-Mobile DE could mean:
Obviously, T-Mobile will lose their exclusivity in Germany when the UMTS iPhone is introduced around June/July. This part was easy. 😉
However, does that mean just another provider (o2 has quite attractive data plans)? Maybe, Apple is switching strategies completly: For example, they could start selling unlocked UMTS iPhones per default (at 399 ) and allow providers to further subsidise it. 🙄
I completely agree. All phones in UK are subsidized in some sort of way and to offer something for almost £300 without 3G, locked and with contract for 2 years is simply ridiculous. I will get mine when they start to subsidize it or I will not get one at all.
Apple, get real in Europe please and get up to date with technology and business practices here please.
I was just thinking: what if t-mobile germany is about to exit the iPhone contract?
The reason why they are now selling the 8 GB Model so much cheaper is because people keep demanding for the 16 GB model.
In fact, T-Mobile never sold the 16 GB - well, not officially (neither via internet nor in their stores)
Only a few people were able to buy the 16 GB by ordering it by telephone.
Now, they bought a lot of 8 GB models from apple and they fully paid it.
So, this price reduction is limited to 25.000 iphones
Lets assume t-mobile paid 400 € per iPhone to apple.
Thats... ....10.000.000 € in their shelf not selling....!
They NEED to sell them out asap!
The reason why they are now selling the 8 GB Model so much cheaper is because people keep demanding for the 16 GB model.
In fact, T-Mobile never sold the 16 GB - well, not officially (neither via internet nor in their stores)
Only a few people were able to buy the 16 GB by ordering it by telephone.
Now, they bought a lot of 8 GB models from apple and they fully paid it.
So, this price reduction is limited to 25.000 iphones
Lets assume t-mobile paid 400 € per iPhone to apple.
Thats... ....10.000.000 € in their shelf not selling....!
They NEED to sell them out asap!
0098386
Suspended
Gloor; it's actually 18 months but yea, it's still quite a long time. There needs to be a 12 month contract.
I can kinda justify the price of the iPhone by looking at how much iPod Touches are. But then you go into an o2 shop and you see what else you can buy for that price. Albeit with a crap OS and buttons (don't like buttons 🙂).
Subsidized £100 off the iPhone, 12 month contracts and 3G. Just watch them fly off the shelves.
I can kinda justify the price of the iPhone by looking at how much iPod Touches are. But then you go into an o2 shop and you see what else you can buy for that price. Albeit with a crap OS and buttons (don't like buttons 🙂).
Subsidized £100 off the iPhone, 12 month contracts and 3G. Just watch them fly off the shelves.
A closer look at the new Complete S plan
The Complete S plan is completely new, arn hasn't really made that clear in his report. For 29 it should be one of the cheapest iPhone plans worldwide, right?
On Complete S, data usage will be limited. It will come with a 500 MB EDGE limit, which is plenty, but it will not include any free access to T-Mobile's Hotspot wifi network at all, unlike the other plans which give you free unlimited access to both EDGE and T-Mobile wifi.
Overall I'm happy with those price drops. Even though the German plans are still expensive, those price drops spread out to a 6 to 12 monthly savings over 24 months.
The Complete S plan is completely new, arn hasn't really made that clear in his report. For 29 it should be one of the cheapest iPhone plans worldwide, right?
On Complete S, data usage will be limited. It will come with a 500 MB EDGE limit, which is plenty, but it will not include any free access to T-Mobile's Hotspot wifi network at all, unlike the other plans which give you free unlimited access to both EDGE and T-Mobile wifi.
Overall I'm happy with those price drops. Even though the German plans are still expensive, those price drops spread out to a 6 to 12 monthly savings over 24 months.