when the new iphone comes out, would it be better to buy the phone without a contract, or buy it with a contract? which would make me save more money in the long term?
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What is more worth it??
- Thread starter delpiero99
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I really try and bite my tongue with threads like this one. How can any one on this site possibly know which is the best choice for you? Ultimately paying outright for the phone is the least expensive option but for most the dumb option (why pay more up front if you plan on staying with the same carrier?). If you change providers a lot or don't want to be locked into a 2 year contract buy outright. Most people stay with their carrier, if that's the case buying subsidized is the best way to go. So why don't you tell us which is the best for you.
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well it depends really, where i live the second you buy a smartphone the carrier plans minimum 40-45$ a month.
i currently pay 25$ a month which is perfect for the usage of my 3gs.
so if i get the iphone when its released, im looking arounda 160$ pricetag for the phone and ill have to get a new contract which will be minimum 40$ a month
but if i just buy the factory unlocked iphone, i might pay around 700$ but long term ill be saving money right?(i keep my phones for over 3 years)
Where is it you live?
$160 for an iPhone? What hook up do you have? IF you keep your phone for 3 years I would buy subsidized (if planning on staying with your carrier for at least 2 of those years) to save some $$. People that say you're being ripped off if you buy subsidized (they will show up in this thread most likely) are short sighted and don't look at the big picture. I assume those that say don't buy subsidized are cell phone carrier spazes and can't stay with a carrier for very long. OR they feel like they're sticking it to the man (typically att) by buying outright and THEN stay with their carrier for 2 years which of course is only forcing them to poney up more clams at the beginning. Your situation sounds like a perfect subsidized situation to me.
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Depends where you're from.
Some carriers will charge you the same rates whether you sign a contract or go month to month.
Others will be cheaper when you go to month to month, and more expensive when you sign a contract.
Buy it unlocked and use Straight Talk. $45 a month for unlimited everything and the coverage is exactly like AT&T.
Then you should buy it upfront - Because if you go on a contract, you'd be buying bigger allowances than you need, right?
dont have straight talk in canada!
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i live in canada, and 160$ meaning getting a 3 year contract lol, sorry if i was misunderstood.
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im on rogers month to month, and 25$ is the cheapest one here, but hey i have unlimited text and abit of data, what more could i ask for?
If you are the type that has to have the new iPhone when it comes out every year, then being locked into a 3 year contract probably isn't the option for you.
My preference is to buy my iPhone outright.
I prefer not to be locked into long contracts.
In the early days contract customers received better package deals but not nowadays. Im on pay as you go and my package is on par or sometimes even better than a contract package.
Ok, I pay up front for my phone instead of throughout a 12/18 or 24 month contract, but its down to disposable income.
Happy days.
I prefer not to be locked into long contracts.
In the early days contract customers received better package deals but not nowadays. Im on pay as you go and my package is on par or sometimes even better than a contract package.
Ok, I pay up front for my phone instead of throughout a 12/18 or 24 month contract, but its down to disposable income.
Happy days.
if you plan to stay with your carrier for long term (say 1-2 years), it's better to buy phone w/ contract. for iphone, i prefer to buy the phone outright. the minimum plan required by (e.g. AT&T) for iPhone is quite expensive.
your right, but im very lazy atm haha.
lets say i get a 3 year contract
minimum 45$ a month... 45x12x3 = 1620
keeping my pay as you go: 23x12x3= 828
the difference is 792$
LETS SAY the new iphone costs as much as the 4s did : 649$
id be saving 143$
I THINK ?????this is all without taxes
Can you not get on a family plan? That is what I did back when the 3gs came out and its much cheaper than buying a full price phone. I was on a $40 450 minute plan and I upgraded to a family plan with 550 for 60. Then I called and told them I wanted to cancel the second line and they offered me a 450 minute family talk plan for 50 so I'm only paying $10 extra a month to get the new iPhone every year. Not sure if the carries in Canada will let you do that or not.
no, i cant get into a family plan.
the only person in my family that has a phone is my father, and only uses it for emergencies
One of the more popular points for comparison on this may be whether you have a "grandfathered" unlimited 3G data plan, i.e. under Verizon. If you were to pay the subsidized phone price, 199, 299, etc. versus full retail (out of contract), you would automatically be assigned one of the new 4G data plans, 2GB, 5GB, or whatever level of data, and forfeit your unlimited 3G plan for good. It's up to your needs and just how much you would be interested in 4G data speeds.
$45.00 /
Includes all monthly fees
200Minutes
Unlimited Evenings & Weekends 6 pm
100MB of data
Additional Data Allowance: $10/100MB
Features included with this plan:
Unlimited Messaging
Rogers One Number
Unlimited MY10 Canada-Wide Talk & Messaging
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this is the least expensive contract for smartphones rogers has in my erea
(rogers is the canadian AT&T)
I've heard a lot of horror stories of straight Talk disconnecting your line if you consume over 100mb/per day and similar usage. Also that it's hard to stream video because they cap your data speeds.
i dont have straight talk where i live, but ive read up on them and their a 50/50
I think it's more depends on where you living as others say... so it is
i find the US has way better phone plans than canada
I'm using ST in my Nexus right now and in the past 3 weeks I've been traveling a lot and have used over 15GB on my phone without any problems. I have the exact same coverage as my iPhone 4 on AT&T, and sometimes better coverage. I seem to have HSPA+ almost everywhere and get 3-8Mbps.