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xxray

macrumors 68040
Original poster
Jul 27, 2013
3,028
9,137
Or are you happy with your purchase? Love to hear your thoughts.
 

DevinNj

macrumors 68000
Apr 27, 2016
1,722
1,740
New Jersey
Maybe it's my old age but I regret anytime I spend money! Seriously though, on a device that I use probably 100 times a day for business and personal/entertainment use, I can justify paying the price. Would I like it if it were cheaper, of course, but almost all flagship phones are very close to/if not exceeding the $1000 mark. Technically speaking it's cheaper than buying a cup of coffee a day so why not.
 

chrismichael83

macrumors member
Sep 15, 2016
78
108
No flagship phone should ever be over 1000, thats just Lldacris. I had the Max but return it because I was in shock when I looked on my bill to see the installment balance of 1200. No thanks. Happy with the XR. The prices apple charges are ridiculous. The pricing models should be Iphone XR 499 64gb, XS 749 gb and XS Max 849. For example a 256gb XS Max costs us $1249 but costs Apple $443 to build. Thats a profit of $806 per phone. Even if they made the XS Max 256 999 they still make $556 per phone and sell more.
 

I7guy

macrumors Nehalem
Nov 30, 2013
34,228
23,971
Gotta be in it to win it
Maybe it's my old age but I regret anytime I spend money! Seriously though, on a device that I use probably 100 times a day for business and personal/entertainment use, I can justify paying the price. Would I like it if it were cheaper, of course, but almost all flagship phones are very close to/if not exceeding the $1000 mark. Technically speaking it's cheaper than buying a cup of coffee a day so why not.
Exactly. I’m giving up coffee for a max.:)

I agree with you in that a device you are on many times a day amortized over a few years...get what you want.
 

maerz001

macrumors 68020
Nov 2, 2010
2,405
2,297
Exactly. I’m giving up coffee for a max.:)

I agree with you in that a device you are on many times a day amortized over a few years...get what you want.
The definition of amortization is that you get back the money for your investment in time.
But as long as u don’t run a business with your phone it’s the exact opposite...
 

smirking

macrumors 68040
Aug 31, 2003
3,744
3,718
Silicon Valley
For example a 256gb XS Max costs us $1249 but costs Apple $443 to build. Thats a profit of $806 per phone. Even if they made the XS Max 256 999 they still make $556 per phone and sell more.

Where did you get those numbers from? The most credible estimate I've seen is that every Apple product more or less returns a 40% profit and the increased costs of the flagship phones account for the cost of the extra stuff they added to the bill of materials for each phone.
 

Knowlege Bomb

macrumors G4
Feb 14, 2008
10,194
8,833
US
When I had my X, not even a little. Now that I've upgraded to a XS, the answer is yes. I told myself over and over that I wasn't going to upgrade and I ended up doing it anyway.

For my uses, I'd never be able to tell the difference between a X and a XS so it definitely seems like a huge waste.
 

JPack

macrumors G5
Mar 27, 2017
12,552
23,270
Where did you get those numbers from? The most credible estimate I've seen is that every Apple product more or less returns a 40% profit and the increased costs of the flagship phones account for the cost of the extra stuff they added to the bill of materials for each phone.

Apple typically marks up the materials cost by 2.5 to 3X.

If you want an accurate estimate, look at the report from IHS Markit. They've been in the business for over 50 years.
 

Never mind

macrumors 65816
Oct 25, 2018
1,071
1,191
Dunedin, Florida
I swallowed the high-price this time, but next year Apple will have to find other fools to fork over 1000+ for a phone. I will keep this one for two or three years and not not be foolish again. This phone does exactly what I want and even last year the iPhone 8+ I had did what I want, but I fell victim to the upgrade stupidity. No more Mr Cook. Did same with the new iPad Pro and since the hardware will be more than needed, It’s time the software Mr. Cook, matches the hardware. No need to upgrade again and again. For some it’s like a habit.
 

Harthag

macrumors 68000
Jun 20, 2009
1,795
2,174
U.S.
XS owner, no regrets. Also recently bought the OnePlus 6T which is half the price and 99% of the phone the XS is. And better in many ways. Next year Apple will have to do much more in order for me to fork over another $1000+ for the iPhone. If the rumors are true and they stick with Intel modems, non-5G, same memory and storage, it will be a very tough sell. The OP 6T has made me seriously question why the hell I'm spending Apple money on phones going forward. I'm that impressed with the 6T.
 

redman042

macrumors 68040
Jun 13, 2008
3,051
1,629
Zero regrets. Every time I entertain myself or get stuff done on that big, beautiful display, or take a photo of my family, or process video and photos at insanely fast speeds, I realize that I made a good choice.

As long as it fits your budget and meets your needs, you are getting a lot for that money.
 

BigMcGuire

Cancelled
Jan 10, 2012
9,832
14,025
No regrets for my wife and I. We're definitely planning on keeping these 2-3 years unlike past phones, especially because of the cost. Came from the 8+. Loving the screen, space, speed, everything. For something we use every day, worth the cost to us!
 

xxray

macrumors 68040
Original poster
Jul 27, 2013
3,028
9,137
XS owner, no regrets. Also recently bought the OnePlus 6T which is half the price and 99% of the phone the XS is. And better in many ways. Next year Apple will have to do much more in order for me to fork over another $1000+ for the iPhone. If the rumors are true and they stick with Intel modems, non-5G, same memory and storage, it will be a very tough sell. The OP 6T has made me seriously question why the hell I'm spending Apple money on phones going forward. I'm that impressed with the 6T.

What do you like about the 6T? How's it better in many ways?
 

The Oak

macrumors 6502
Nov 12, 2013
372
249
Well ... got the Buy One get $750 off the next via my carrier ... so it was not as bad ...
 

CritSwift

macrumors newbie
Oct 22, 2018
6
8
North Carolina
No, I do not regret it.

Here are my reasons (some of which others have mentioned):
  • The phone is used SO much during the day. No other object is used as much as it is throughout the day
  • It's going to last me 4-5 years, assuming no accidents or sudden leaps in design (like how this iteration had no home button)
  • I resell them for about 50%? return
  • Computers, tablets and phones are my passion -- I choose to spend money on those things (see signature). I don't have a super expensive car, I don't drink or smoke (both can be costly), and I have no other hobbies or interests.

Do I expect everyone to swallow the price? Eh. I don't blame them one way or the other.

For me, I'll gladly pay "Apple Tax" for ease of use, reliability, and app quality compared to Android, so that's a no brainer versus getting say a Samsung with "better specs".
If compared to other iPhones, yeah it'd be nice if it didn't break $1000, but it is what it is. There are still options for cheaper, such as the Xr or previous generation iPhones. Nothing is stopping someone from using an iPhone 6 or 7 (whereas Android units get MAYBE two years of updates, Apple keeps up for much longer). Those that want the bleeding edge tech (like no home button, bezel-less-er? displays, OLED) can pony up and those that don't have options too.
 

Harthag

macrumors 68000
Jun 20, 2009
1,795
2,174
U.S.
What do you like about the 6T? How's it better in many ways?
Entirely subjective.

-Fast charger in the box is a huge plus and is quicker than the 30W fast charger from Apple, sold separately
-True physical dual sim phone and not e-sim crap where you have to rely on carrier support
-Longer battery life
-FAR better cellular reception than my (Intel) XS, never have to use WiFi calling in my apartment
-Ability to truly adjust white point / full control over screen color and tint if need be
-Ability to hide the teardrop "notch" without sacrificing really any screen real estate + notifications / status bar icons remain above the screen area
-Full screen immersive mode in Chrome / no icons or nav bar
-Dark theme
-Hardware toggle button for notifications (ring, vibrate, silence all)
-8gb memory vs. 4. OnePlus actually makes use of it for optimization of apps
-128gb storage in base model vs. 64gb
-$580 vs. $1000

Those are just a few things. That said, I fully realize that if I have a technical issue with the phone I am pretty much SOL and probably can't rely on OnePlus support. Pales in comparison to Apple support. I've never had a catastrophic phone failure, ever. That's also why I always own two phones.
 
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AudibleNectar

macrumors member
Jan 22, 2018
47
31
I got a Gold Xs Max 256GB for $950 through my carrier so I'm happy as can be holding that big boy for under a grand:) And since I tend to keep such devices until the end of their useful lives that's all the more reason to be OK with the price charged vs. other alternatives. I'm not even one to buy "flagship" with this kind of stuff (in fact will usually buy for a deal just as the new years' versions come out) but this was THE phone I have wanted Apple to build, so when they finally did I figured I owed them the business:D
 

tt061282

macrumors 6502
Mar 18, 2018
367
409
Nevada
Well in a way I do regret it. I had the X since November of last year... which means when the Max came out my phone was less than a year old. I’m a “techie” therefore I felt like I had to have the Max. However there were voices telling me to wait for the Xʀ to be sure it was what I wanted to do. Instead launch day I buy the Max after selling my X for almost $700 which was not bad Considering. So that means I really spent around $500 on the Max, but... I always knew deep down I was gonna try the Xʀ when it was released...

Now my Max is sitting on my counter taking up space as I haven’t took the time to try and sale the phone. It’s either that or I’m wanting to be 100% sure I wanna stick with the Xʀ.... I’m not completely sure which one it is yet, but I do know that since October 26th my daily driver has been the Xʀ.

So I guess in a way I could say I regret it if I don’t end up going back to my XS Max... if I end up using this Xʀ until next launch then I basically wasted money.
 
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