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Will you pay $2011.00 for iPhone 3G (2yr cost of ownership) in this economy?
- Thread starter zub3qin
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I'm going out on a limb here...but I'm guessing that those that can afford it and want it will, and those that can't won't.
Well that $3 a day buys you just 15 minutes of peak talk time. (450 mins/month)
If you want more than 15 minutes of peak talk time a day, you will pay considerably more.
That's really a red herring. If you buy or upgrade to any AT&T phone with a data plan, you have to pay for the phone, wireless & data service and commit to a 2yr agreement. So a Tilt or a Blackberry 8820 are going to cost you pretty much the same as an iPhone.
No pun intended but let's compare apples to apples and not put the iPhone out there as an expensive anomaly.
I dont see it as paying $2,011 for an iphone. I have had cell phones well before the iphone was ever thought about and being that I dont have a landline, a phone is a necessity. My plan will only be increasing $35 ($30 for data + 5 for texts) a month from what I would usually pay, so yes, it is worth it to me to pay $840 over 2 years for an iphone.
Just like I dont compare what electric costs me every 2 years because it is a necessity, I dont compare what a cell phone will cost either since I have to have a phone.
Just like I dont compare what electric costs me every 2 years because it is a necessity, I dont compare what a cell phone will cost either since I have to have a phone.
I think the poll's goal is to get info on whether Macforums users consider $2011 for the iPhone 3G a worthwhile investment or an unneeded luxury, during the current economic climate. Not whether iPhone 3G is cheaper, more expensive, better or worse than any other vendor's phone.
No need to compare the iPhone to Tilt or Blackberry.... the poll doesn't.
Who actually thinks about owning a phone in this way?
I mean, really? What a load of balls.
Actually, the iPhone DOES need to be compared to other phones.
Assuming that if a person wants an iPhone, they probably already have a cell phone, or are going to get a cell phone of some type anyway.
So, the real comparison here is, how much the iPhone will cost compared to another cell phone.
And I believe this thread is wasted since that comparison has already been drug through the mud in all the other threads that have been started days/weeks ago.
But, this one will probably go on for awhile. I participated.
Assuming that if a person wants an iPhone, they probably already have a cell phone, or are going to get a cell phone of some type anyway.
So, the real comparison here is, how much the iPhone will cost compared to another cell phone.
And I believe this thread is wasted since that comparison has already been drug through the mud in all the other threads that have been started days/weeks ago.
But, this one will probably go on for awhile. I participated.
For me as an existing iPhone owner on a Family plan it will only cost me;
$18 - Waived
$30 for data pkg, I pay $20 already so thats only $10 more
$5 for text package, not happy about this but I will see what can be done....
Total $15 more a month for the new phone pkg
$299 phone Sold old iPhone for $400 so i have $ left over for new case/skin
So thats $360* more over a 2 year period then i'd pay as a v1 iPhone owner.
Yeah I can afford that
Yeah I know my taxs/fees will go up but I can't see more then $2 more there.
As others have said, if you can't afford it don't get it.
Yeah, I'm sick of this crap. Every smartphone is going to cost you at least a couple grand over the course of a couple years. Hell, a "free" phone will still cost you over $1000 with the cheapest plan, but no one bitches about that. The iPhone is a premium device. It's not a necessity. You're paying for premium service (supposedly). Sure, who wouldn't want it to be cheaper -- but it's no worse than anything else out there.
the problem is that the poll is in itself inaccurate because it is using the wrong numbers, you can't make this comparison in a vacuum absent numbers for at the very least the average cost of cellphone + service over 2 years. and it is the difference that would be what is being paid
the reason why you have to include those types numbers is because if you don't you are making the assumption that those answering your poll don't currently have any cell service. which is going to not be the case in fact it is likelly that nearly 100% of those people will have some sort of service right now
so how can you completely ignore their current cost when thinking about how much more they are going to pay for an iPhone
example,
i have a car payment of $300 a month, and i decide i need a SUV, and i'm deciding between a Mercedes ML350 and a Kia. the Mercedes will cost me $650 a month and the Kia will keep me at $300. if i try to figure out if it is worth it for me to get the Mercedes, i'm not going to think of it as a $650 payment, i'm going to think of it as an additional $350 i have to pay, i already pay $300 and i will regardless of my decision to buy a Mercedes or not, so that part of the total amount is irrelevant
And what is the cost of taking a sh*t when totaled over 2 years? Don't forget to include all the rolls of TP, the water and sewer bill, electricity for the lights and bathroom fan, and toilet bowl cleaner?
Here's another way to look at it: $2000 over 2 years comes to less than $2.75 per day - a modest price to pay for mobile voice communication AND the internet in the palm of your hand. Many people pay more than that for their cup of coffee each morning.
"This economy"?
Unemployment nice and low at 5.5%, DOW at 11,200, and retail sales up 1.2% for May, GDP is up 0.9% for Q1 '08. The fact of the matter is that while some areas are "soft" at the moment, the economy as a whole is still growing. Some doom-sayers who talk about a recession are just plain clueless - a recession means two consecutive quarters of negative growth - we haven't even had a single quarter of negative growth. There's a BIG difference between slowing down a bit, and switching into reverse, but apparently that's too difficult a concept for some to grasp. Not necessarily
Investment? You need to look that term up. Nothing electronic is an investment. Cell phones are accepted as past of the cost of living nowadays.
Investment? You need to look that term up. Nothing electronic is an investment. Cell phones are accepted as past of the cost of living nowadays.
Voted yes, but being in the UK it's slightly different. I'll be paying £45 per month for a minimum of 18 months + £59 for the iPhone. That works out at just over the $2011 quoted in the poll over 24 months, but it's for 1200 minutes, 500 texts and unlimited data. That includes all taxes, and we don't get charged at all for incoming calls / texts.
Given the value I get out of my present iPhone and how this one will be even more useful with GPS and 3G, I would say it is a steal and a massive bargain.
I guess if you are just going to use it to text people in your home room, "R U HOT 4 ME?"
It might not be worth it. Otherwise I suspect a lot of people will find a real affordability and value in this iPhone.
I guess if you are just going to use it to text people in your home room, "R U HOT 4 ME?"
It might not be worth it. Otherwise I suspect a lot of people will find a real affordability and value in this iPhone.
$2011 over two years!!?? Dang, I just worked out the numbers and realized I am spending $3029 in one year just going to Starbucks twice a day! (and I'm a starving artist.) Maybe I should cut down my Starbucks habit to once a day so I can afford the iPhone 3G.
(how's that for some perspective for you)
everyone complaining about how few minutes ATT offers compared to other services are forgetting one thing:
ROLLOVER
I share a family plan with 2 other people, and we have 500 minutes
but looking at our account, after around 2 years on the plan, we have 2000 rollover minutes.
but wait, we've had at least that many or more rollover minutes since our 6th month
You'd be amazed how fast it adds up
you get every minute you pay for
unlike others who take away unused minutes after the end of the month
so 450 minutes a month is actually 450 + those extra 300 minutes from the last few months that you didn't use for whatever reason
throw in the fact that any number on ATT that you call is free
all of the sudden your wife, also on your ATT family plan, who took up a few hundred of your minutes talking to each month (what did you send me to the grocery store hun? I forgot to write it down) now takes up 0. and those extra minutes ROLLOVER for use whenever you want, regardless of the month
ROLLOVER
I share a family plan with 2 other people, and we have 500 minutes
but looking at our account, after around 2 years on the plan, we have 2000 rollover minutes.
but wait, we've had at least that many or more rollover minutes since our 6th month
You'd be amazed how fast it adds up
you get every minute you pay for
unlike others who take away unused minutes after the end of the month
so 450 minutes a month is actually 450 + those extra 300 minutes from the last few months that you didn't use for whatever reason
throw in the fact that any number on ATT that you call is free
all of the sudden your wife, also on your ATT family plan, who took up a few hundred of your minutes talking to each month (what did you send me to the grocery store hun? I forgot to write it down) now takes up 0. and those extra minutes ROLLOVER for use whenever you want, regardless of the month