Slashdot Mirror
Ask Slashdot: Why Would Anyone Want To Spend $1,000 on a Smartphone?
Last month, Apple CEO Tim Cook said the $1,000 sticker price for the base model of iPhone X, the latest flagship smartphone from the company which goes on sale next month, is "a value price for the technology that you're getting." An anonymous reader writes: I simply don't understand why anyone would want to spend such amount on a phone. Don't get me wrong. Having a smartphone is crucial in this day and age. I get it. But even a $200 phone, untethered from any carrier contract, will let you install the apps you need, will allow you to take good pictures, surf the web, and listen to music. That handset might not be as fast as the iPhone X or Samsung's new Galaxy Note 8, or it might not be able to take as great pictures, but the difference, I feel, doesn't warrant an additional $800. The reader shares a column: When considering a purchase, comparing the value a product will add to our lives, and its cost is wise. Subjective perceptions affect how we value possessions, but let's consider the practical value of how we use smartphones. Smartphones aren't used for talking as often as the phones that preceded them were. In fact, actual "phone" use ranks below messaging, web surfing, social media and other activities that dominate smartphone usage. Furthermore, statistically we use only six core apps regularly. [...] My point is, smartphones have't changed all that much relatively speaking. Sure they're bigger, faster, more powerful and have awesome cameras. But the iPhone X is fundamentally the same device the earlier iPhones were, and provides the same basic and sought after functions. It's a glass-covered rectangular slab mostly used for messaging, web-surfing, music and social media activity. An individual's perception of self, financial resources, desired or actual social position and love for tech will likely play a role in his perception of the value of a $1,000 smartphone.
There are a lot of people out there that $1K isn't that much of an expenditure and won't break the bank or impede on their normal every day budget.
I'm not one of them, I mean, I could dig up $1K quick if really needed, but usually with expensive things, I do what I've always done. I save my money till I can afford to buy what I want.
Hell, I've bought a refurb canon lens that was about $2400 (retail price about $3K). Now, you might ask "who would buy a lens that's almost $3K"...well, me. But I saw I wanted and could use the 11-24mm Canon L lens, and I saved my money till I had the cash to pay for it in full.
I'm happy with the lens, I use it and enjoy it without a bit of remorse.
I don't see me picking up this phone any time soon. My 6s Plus is doing just find and will likely last me a few more moons.
When it is getting time to replace it, I may look at this new iPhone or whatever it is when I get ready and evaluate if it meets my needs and if I want it, I'll buy it.
I just use restraint and don't buy a bunch of piddly crap here and there. I find something I want, I save and I buy when I have the money.
It just takes being an adult about your finances for most of us. Live within your means, and if you want something special, sacrifice some, save and get it.
Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.........
For people who use their smartphones extensively every day, upgrading can make sense. Put your money where you put your time. If you're on a two-year cycle, then the cost of the new $1000 phone works out to $1.37/day over the two-year lifespan, which isn't crazy.
Of course, there are less expensive options, and if they work for you, go for it. Just don't be a jerk and tell everyone else that they're wrong to buy something just because it's not right for you.
1 or 2 times a day to Starbucks will put you there easily. I looked at my Starbucks spending a few months ago and I was horrified. I cut that shit out.
Beware of the Leopard.
Some people just have to have the 'latest and greatest', for whatever reason, and that reason doesn't have to be (and very often is not) anything practical.
I've never felt bad about buying things I use. I feel crappy that I spent $200 on an industrial CO detector only to determine I did not have a CO leak then never use it again. When I spend $1,000 on a smart phone that I use literally every hour of every day for such a wide variety of tasks they are too many to enumerate here ... I don't feel so bad.
doesn't have to be (and very often is not) anything practical.
What's not practical about an iPhone? Maybe you are confusing practical with affordable.