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The real prices of the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini

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Re: The real prices of the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini

#22

I understand Apple’s approach to Verizon here. Just like the initial iPhone needed one carrier to get things right, 5G infrastructure testing will be like that. It is in Apple’s best interest if their users experience 5G as best as the current infrastructure allows (which isn’t great yet, because it will take a decade for a full rollout). It makes sense to have the carriers bend over backwards to see who gets to be t…

It's a slap in the face to T-Mobile which has had nationwide 5G for a while.

Re: The real prices of the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini

#23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

actually it is on a phone that costs $699 i.e. a 4.3% price increase

That's assuming everyone buys the cheaper version with no memory upgrades. Apple's average sales price is significantly higher than that. This seems marginal.

We might as well assume that everyone buys the pro and then there is no markup at all.

Re: The real prices of the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini

#24

Why doesn't the US have universal laws that cover price transparency in general? There are so many industries that get into shady territory: rental cars ("facility use fees"), hotels ("resort fees"), internet access ("mandatory equipment rental fees"), even SF restaurants ("SF mandate"). I'm saying Apple is wrong, and so are many other companies, and shouldn't we have fixed this with a law by this point?

Adding to the industries that get into shady territory: universities. Campus fees, "activity" fees, etc. Now apparently COVID-related fees too [1].

[1]: https://www.cnbc.com/2020/08/20/college-students-get-hit-wit...

Re: The real prices of the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini

#25

Why doesn't the US have universal laws that cover price transparency in general? There are so many industries that get into shady territory: rental cars ("facility use fees"), hotels ("resort fees"), internet access ("mandatory equipment rental fees"), even SF restaurants ("SF mandate"). I'm saying Apple is wrong, and so are many other companies, and shouldn't we have fixed this with a law by this point?

"We" don't like regulation these days. Airlines, for example, were treated like public utilities with tariff schedules approved by some board.

Flights were more expensive, but the business was sustainable. Now you have airlines like Norwegian Airlines where you could fly from an out of the way airport in NY to London for less than long-term parking.

Re: The real prices of the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini

#26

$30 seems a trivial thing to mislead about. Who's making an iPhone buying decision based on $30 either way as their red line? People just see the first digit and the number of digits. (I also think it's a trivial thing to complain about, but I think that's going to be a much more controversial opinion!)

yup, so it looks like $6xx rather than $7xx.

Re: The real prices of the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini

#27

I understand Apple’s approach to Verizon here. Just like the initial iPhone needed one carrier to get things right, 5G infrastructure testing will be like that. It is in Apple’s best interest if their users experience 5G as best as the current infrastructure allows (which isn’t great yet, because it will take a decade for a full rollout). It makes sense to have the carriers bend over backwards to see who gets to be t…

Are end-users even going to have a "5G experience"? The average user isn't going to really notice faster downloads or lower latency relative to good LTE.

If anything it seems like Apple is doing the wireless carriers a favor by carrying the marketing water for 5G

Re: The real prices of the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini

#28

I understand Apple’s approach to Verizon here. Just like the initial iPhone needed one carrier to get things right, 5G infrastructure testing will be like that. It is in Apple’s best interest if their users experience 5G as best as the current infrastructure allows (which isn’t great yet, because it will take a decade for a full rollout). It makes sense to have the carriers bend over backwards to see who gets to be t…

I have a way more simple explanation.

Verizon and AT&T offered Apple a lot of money and lower retailer margin.

There are only three cellular providers left and their networks are roughly the same.

Verizon most definitely paid for airtime on that keynote.

Re: The real prices of the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini

#29
post #24

Why doesn't the US have universal laws that cover price transparency in general? There are so many industries that get into shady territory: rental cars ("facility use fees"), hotels ("resort fees"), internet access ("mandatory equipment rental fees"), even SF restaurants ("SF mandate"). I'm saying Apple is wrong, and so are many other companies, and shouldn't we have fixed this with a law by this point?

Adding to the industries that get into shady territory: universities. Campus fees, "activity" fees, etc. Now apparently COVID-related fees too [1]. [1]: https://www.cnbc.com/2020/08/20/college-students-get-hit-wit...

> COVID-related fees

That's a dark phrase.

Re: The real prices of the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini

#30
post #14

Why doesn't the US have universal laws that cover price transparency in general? There are so many industries that get into shady territory: rental cars ("facility use fees"), hotels ("resort fees"), internet access ("mandatory equipment rental fees"), even SF restaurants ("SF mandate"). I'm saying Apple is wrong, and so are many other companies, and shouldn't we have fixed this with a law by this point?

There are a lot of things the US should do. Our government is down at the moment, and on-call has no idea how to resolve the issue.

The corporations have been running the country since it was a nation.
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