Slashdot Mirror
The Days of Cheap, Subsidized Phones May Be Numbered
In the U.S., subsidized phones are the norm: for post-paid, long-term contract use, getting a low up-front price on a phone is one of the few upsides. New submitter Apptopia writes "After T Mobile mostly did away with subsidized phone plans, the other major carriers (Verizon, AT&T, Sprint) are paying attention. Carriers lose money with phone subsidies for high-end smartphones (particularly Apple's iPhone). If they do away with the subsidy, you will have to pay full retail price for phones, but your monthly bill will be lower." If people had a better idea what they were paying for, though, manufacturers might fight harder on price. There are lots of well-reviewed, multi-band, unlocked phones on Amazon and DealExtreme from lesser-known companies, and Nokia's new Asha 501 (though limited in many ways, including availability, having just launched in India) shows that the "smartphone" label can apply even to a sub- $100 phone.
howdy y'all,
so, when did the article title writer ever look over a contract? or set up a budget? or compare the actual costs of an item from multiple sources?
as others have pointed out subsidized DOES NOT necessarily equal cheap. it frequently equals really expensive when you include all of the costs.
what a dingleberry ... [*sigh ...*]
take care,
lee
Yeah, 200%+ profit is fair for JUNK that will be outdated JUNK next year. Wouldn't want those poor giving souls at crAPPLE to starve. Why, it costs so much to develop the next idea for punishing aficionados, they might have to lose sattelite T.V. in the break room.
Htc and other companies APPEAR to lose money selling $650. Silly,like buying a used car for that "INSANE PRICE" no one can beat, you only make up the difference later in your bullshit contract. They NEVER lose. You lose. You'll never see or guess at their numbers either. Just whatever they feel like telling you.
Optimist consumers are funny.
*Repent!Quit Your Job!Slack Off!The World Ends Tomorrow and You May Die!