Everyone is talking about the $30, but the real story is that iPhone 12 is at least $100 more expensive than iPhone 11. The $30 thing seems almost like an intentional distraction from a huge price increase during a global depression and pandemic.
The real prices of the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini
81–90 of 416 posts
Re: The real prices of the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini
#82It seems odd to call a $30 subsidy a lie when the industry standard was a 50%, 75%, or 100% subsidy just a few years ago.
A lie that involves charging someone more money is still a lie even if it's $30 (not insignificant! the cost of a good meal or ~half a tank of gas!) instead of $300
What part of "starting at $699" is a lie? You will be able to exchange $699 for an iPhone 12 Mini.
Re: The real prices of the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini
#83Why 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?
Because some people would make less money.
Re: The real prices of the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini
#84Slightly misleading yes, but we're talking about $30 on phones that cost nearly a $1000. Accusing Apple of playing "marketing games" with carriers is a bit of a stretch.
If you give companies an inch on stuff like this, they'll take a mile. There's no legitimate reason they should be able to play this kind of pricing game, regardless of the relative price increase.
Re: The real prices of the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini
#85Earlier quoted context omitted.
I remember the iPhone launching as an AT&T exclusive or something back in the day. Did whichever US carrier it was get the same duration of exclusive placement?
I understand that was more because AT&T/Cingular was the only carrier willing to allow a phone that they literally weren’t allowed to see until launch day onto their network. Didn’t the other carriers baulk at Apple and tell them to pound-sand for thinking they’d let them use their network without any oversight of their phone’s software system or similar?
At the time Verizon also mandated every phone on their network had a whip style antenna. The networks had a stranglehold on the handset market, and it took the iPhone to break it.
Re: The real prices of the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini
#86Earlier quoted context omitted.
I think netflix users might notice. If they can push ‘download local’ and it takes 1 second to do so, that might be an interesting thing :) Also, 1 GB games that take 1 second to update will be nice.
But you will realistically only get those speeds so close to the cellular antenna that you can feel it melting your brain. /s but actually you do need to be within a few hundred feed of the antenna to get "impressive" 5G speeds. I heard reports that during the build out at NFL stadiums, the antenna coverage didn't even reach the field when placed at the top of the seating.
I would imagine that NFL stadiums are particularly bad RF environments because of interference due to reflection.
OTOH, lots of dense urban environments have similar issues.
Re: The real prices of the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini
#87Anyone who is saying, oh it's just $30 is living in a bubble.. - Many people buy these on a monthly installment, so $30 can be 1-2 months of installment. (not sure which exactly I have not verified). - From a Marketing standpoint the difference is $6xx vs $7xx pricing, which has a psychological impact. This is why a very very large percentage of prices end in .90-.99 - This seems to be the first time Apple has done t…
I think the difference from a marketing perspective is the big issue, as there is a big psychological inertia people have with Apple prices not ending in a neat "$__99". Are people really buying the latest iPhone on monthly installment plans? How much more do you pay for the device over the lifetime of the plan? I'm still hanging on to my 2016 Galaxy S7 because it works great and phone prices seem to have spiked mass…
Apple's monthly payment plan is just the price of the phone divided over 24 months, so it's what I personally opted for.
Re: The real prices of the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini
#88Re: The real prices of the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini
#89Earlier quoted context omitted.
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.
Your comment is funny, but you should be aware this is a state issue, not a federal one. Unless you are implying every state is down too :)
What makes this a state issue?
Re: The real prices of the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini
#90Phone subsidies are bad and should go away. Showing the post-subsidy price is dishonest.
If I grant the second premise, could you explain your antipathy to the first?
If I want to have a mobile phone, I need a mobile phone plan to go with it. What's wrong with bundling those services for a slightly lower total bill? It strikes me as pretty standard business logic.