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iPhone 3G Finally Available In US Contract-Free

Posted by ScuttleMonkey on from the long-time-coming dept.

Engadget is reporting that the iPhone 3G is finally available contract-free if you are willing to pay a much higher premium. Without a contract consumers are looking at $599 for an 8GB model and $699 for the 16GB. AT&T has the added restriction that you must be an existing AT&T customer, but Apple (retail stores only, sorry) will sell one to anyone willing to pay the premium. This change brings the model much closer to the prevailing European model where phones are sold as hardware and the plans are handled completely separately.

13 of 265 comments (clear)

  1. European Model... by MLopat · · Score: 4, Informative

    I love how marketers in North America continue to push the idea of "European". We've all seen the infomercials where they state "This is a best selling product in Europe..." or "In Europe this retails for $60 but..."

    The way that it really works in Europe is that you pay for your phone over the course of your contract. For example, if you want a phone that is $600 and you are on a 3 year agreement, you pay $16.67 as a line item on your monthly bill to pay for the cost of the phone. That's much better than the hidden subsidy cost that most (if not all) North American carriers provide.

  2. So it's true by BigHungryJoe · · Score: 4, Funny

    The contracts WERE in order to subsidize the cost of the phone... and the whole time I thought it was so they could lock me in and deliver shitty service. But seeing that the phone is $400 more without a contract pretty much proves what the cell phone companies have been saying all along.

    1. Re:So it's true by cayenne8 · · Score: 4, Insightful
      I"m wondering when the NEW iPhone will come out? Still rumored to be in June?

      I wonder how much that will be.

      Or, are they maybe trying to sell the current phones they have on stock out now, and this is a ploy to sell them faster?

      --
      Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.........
    2. Re:So it's true by ausekilis · · Score: 5, Informative
      Lets do a little math with AT&T's contract
      • $36 activation fee for each new line
      • $175 early termination fee of contract
      • $199 8G iPhone w/2yr contract
      • $411 to get an iPhone via broken contract

      Or I could spend $599 for one without a contract, and still give AT&T a boatload of money.

      How exactly is this a good deal?

    3. Re:So it's true by quangdog · · Score: 5, Insightful

      See, AT&T (and many other carriers) count on the fact that most of the general public has difficulty doing simple arithmetic. When most people are standing in the store holding the shiny new phone, they just can't (or don't care to) add.

      --Kimball
      http://www.incredicode.com/velocity.html

  3. Re:European Model... by Nursie · · Score: 4, Insightful

    The UK must not be in Europe then.

    In the UK the phone is "free" (or not) and then you get contracts that provide you with minutes/texts that do cover the cost of the phone, but it's still hidden.

    Most phones are available without a contract if you want to pay that much, and you can get contracts without phones that are considerably cheaper. But it's not necessarily the most economical way of doing it.

    No, the UK way is to have the phone covered by the contract but the contract only lasts a single year, after which the companies are obliged to SIM Unlock the phone for a nominal fee.

    Or of course just to use pay as you go, if that's your thing.

  4. But why *must* I have an iPhone? by bogaboga · · Score: 4, Funny

    To me, this product from Samsung is better in every way compared to the latest iphone.

    1. Re:But why *must* I have an iPhone? by iluvcapra · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Much lower screen rez, 240x440 versus 320x480. Also, the screen isn't multitouch and I've seen many phones with a Flash UI, and they're all uniformly miserable. No app store...

      Honestly, it looks more like they were trying to rip off the Storm than the iPhone.

      --
      Don't blame me, I voted for Baltar.
    2. Re:But why *must* I have an iPhone? by akozakie · · Score: 5, Insightful

      O-kay... Now WHY is parent modded as funny? Fanboy mods probably think that any comment suggesting that some product is better than iPhone must be tongue-in-cheek (with the possible exception of Android).

      Just like iPod never was the perfect MP3 player, iPhone is not and never will be the perfect phone. Sure, for many users, including a couple of my friends, the iPhone is great and nothing comes close, but "many" isn't the same as "all".

      I played a bit with the iPhone. It's fun. It's well designed. It's not for me. I definitely wouldn't exchange my Nokia E61i for it, and that's an old phone now, better ones are available. If I had a choice - get iPhone for free or buy E61, E71, or something like that - I'd reach for my wallet. For me it's far more functional.

      For example - I don't really like touchscreen interfaces, especially with small (<10") screens, multitouch doesn't change this. Typing an SMS or working with SSH is so much faster on a full qwerty keyboard, after you get used to it you can actually touch-type with your thumbs.

      Still, I read articles in newspapers and feel that I'm expected to want an iPhone. Even here on /. it's the same thing - it seems that I should want one. So many interesting designs on the market, but only iPhone and Android seem to get any attention.

      So, the parent was right in both the title and the comment. The iPhone is not for everyone and it is a bit irritating to see it mentioned everywhere and get weird looks from iPhone owners when they show it to you and you say "It's nice, but I prefer something else".

      Unless of course I missed the joke?

  5. Pointless... by nweaver · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Its cheaper to buy the phone and break the contract if you want a "no contract" iPhone, as its only $400 or so that way.

    --
    Test your net with Netalyzr
  6. Re:Jail-breaking by iluvcapra · · Score: 4, Informative

    Lets define our terms:

    • "Jailbreaking" is performing a procedure so that you can run any executable you wish, and not just those permitted by the App store.
    • "unlocking" is performing a procedure so that you can use the phone with a different carrier.

    This story would appear to be an instance of the second thing.

    --
    Don't blame me, I voted for Baltar.
  7. Re:It's funny. In Japan, they can't give them away by je+ne+sais+quoi · · Score: 5, Informative

    Low iphone sales in Japan is FUD to which the blogosphere and the WSJ caught on. In fact, Japan ranks second in iphone sales. Of course the U.S. is where the majority of sales are, but the idea that iphones aren't selling in Japan is the result of somebody trying to manipulate Apple's stock price. It's all exposed here.

    --
    Gentlemen! You can't fight in here, this is the war room!
  8. Re:European Model... by rgviza · · Score: 4, Funny

    Well you know that Sham-Wow is made in Germany and Germans always make great stuff!

    --
    Don't kid yourself. It's the size of the regexp AND how you use it that counts.