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With a $1k Price, Apple’s iPhone Crosses a Threshold

nytimes.com

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Re: With a $1k Price, Apple’s iPhone Crosses a Threshold

#541

Post by chimeracoder »

jerf wrote: post #496
dogruck wrote: post #465

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Strange how the US healthcare setup is largely unchanged over many years, yet the general perception is that it's suddenly total chaos. I'm not saying the status quo is best, but we didn't suddenly plunge into a crisis.

Almost everyone is politically motivated in some way to slam the healthcare system; nobody is politically motivated to defend it. Personally I'd offer the somewhat-feeble defense that it isn't as bad as people say it is, but I'd stop far short of calling it good... because I've got my own political axes to grind too, even if they are nearly diametrically opposed to the local consensus. But it isn't actually true that…

> Ambulance crews do not prowl the street and abduct unsuspecting European tourists and force them to donate blood before they're allowed to escape.

Why would they? The US produces a surplus of blood and tissue, to the point that many other countries (particularly in Europe) have to purchase to from the US to address their own shortages.

Re: With a $1k Price, Apple’s iPhone Crosses a Threshold

#542

Post by kristopolous »

Vinnl wrote: post #409
problems wrote: post #380

Earlier quoted context omitted.

New battery is about $10, not exactly a blocker, but they do increase the price.

Hmm OK, so I guess you just make sure you buy a phone with an easily replaceable battery then? Or is it that cheap when you have it done too?

You don't even need that. Phones like the LG Fortune, which I own and works totally fine, can be bought for $25 new and out the door, no contract, at mainstream retailers like Best Buy.

I also have a moto e4 which I'm using to type this. I think it cost me about $65. (I also have a variety of iDevices and flagship phones for testing stuff I write)

We are in the age of adequate, super cheap phones that aren't awful. I have the option of, but choose not to place my sim card in one of more expensive and flashy devices I own because I'd rather have the thing I carry with me be a "worthless commodity" that could get lost without my caring at all.

Last time my phone broke I just swapped the sim card that day, not caring in the slightest. This is a liberating experience.

You can also do this with prescription glasses - you can pay under $7 a pair online. Anti-scratch, investment preserving upgrades and the feeling of preciousness are all gone. Not having to emotionally invest in things is wonderful.

Re: With a $1k Price, Apple’s iPhone Crosses a Threshold

#543

Post by dm319 »

thanksgiving wrote: post #485
kayoone wrote: post #477

Earlier quoted context omitted.

not getting healthcare as a 20-something is popular, but incredibly shortsighted.

> not getting healthcare as a 20-something is popular, but incredibly shortsighted. My idea is that it is not something that you should have to think about. I mean I understand it is a difficult topic because you have these outliers that can totally destroy your life if you have a baby with a malfunctioning heart or whatever but it comes back to the question of what we think is fair. I sincerely believe that healthca…

> where the cost is too great AND the outcome is not good enough can and should get denied.

I'm not completely clear on the point you're trying to make, but this is how things work in socialised healthcare. Not everything is paid for - instead the money that is available is spent on those that return the best value-for-money balanced against not being unfair on an individual level. The question of whether to MRI everyone with tummy pain is translatable into a clinical question and can be tested in clinical studies.

In the UK we work on using a QALY - or quality-adjusted life-year to help with these sorts of decisions. They are used on boards in NICE (for general health-provisioning guidance) and the cancer drugs fund [1] which aims to give quick guidance on the fast-developing and expensive field of anti-cancer therapies.

Sure there are no silver bullets, but issues you bring up are being tackled to a relatively sophisticated degree in other countries.

[1] https://www.england.nhs.uk/cancer/cdf/

Re: With a $1k Price, Apple’s iPhone Crosses a Threshold

#544

Post by falsedan »

jsjohnst wrote: post #423
andai wrote: post #381

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've used a case with almost every phone and shattered 4 screens in the last 4 years.

Not to be rude, but it'd likely be prudent for you to learn to be more careful.

Pretty Rude!

Re: With a $1k Price, Apple’s iPhone Crosses a Threshold

#545

Post by tagurit »

It's interesting how in this forum people are concerned more about functionalities that don't justify its price point. But not so much on the aesthetics which is what the regular consumer really cares about. For the average Apple customer, the bezel change is HUGE. It's enough to justify the 1k even though it's not an innovation or some crazy performance boost. People are definitely still going to buy it.

Re: With a $1k Price, Apple’s iPhone Crosses a Threshold

#546

Post by Shivetya »

ksec wrote: post #248

If we take a look from a Global Perspective, US has the cheapest iPhone ( All prices excluding sales Tax ), and everywhere else had it more expensive. i.e The $1K Prices may be making a big waves in US, but elsewhere in the world they have been paying that much for an iPhone already. And in terms of iPhones / Population / Apple Store, the US has it most. While in Japan 60% of the Smartphone are iPhone ( i.e Higher th…

are you including VAT in European prices? Any comparison needs to be worked back to price before taxes.

Re: With a $1k Price, Apple’s iPhone Crosses a Threshold

#547

Post by stevenwoo »

drawnwren wrote: post #497
djtriptych wrote: post #487

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Median income Thai and Korean people don't buy iPhones.

This is actually a) not true and b) not relevant to the original argument. I was amazed by how many people I met in Thailand and Korea who were struggling to meet $500 rent that had iPhones. More importantly, the original post argued that price of iPhone was directly correlated with disposable income.

Are those people with iPhones in Korea and Thailand buying on installment or paying by the month/renting the phones instead of buying?

Re: With a $1k Price, Apple’s iPhone Crosses a Threshold

#548

Post by dfabulich »

dogruck wrote: post #465
mbroncano wrote: post #414

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You got it right, it's difficult to imagine for a European what it's like to deal with having no medical care if unemployed. In addition, the fact that's part of every discussion gives a hint of how much of an issue this is.

Strange how the US healthcare setup is largely unchanged over many years, yet the general perception is that it's suddenly total chaos. I'm not saying the status quo is best, but we didn't suddenly plunge into a crisis.

It's a lot more expensive than it used to be. https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SH.XPD.PCAP?locations=U...

Re: With a $1k Price, Apple’s iPhone Crosses a Threshold

#549

Post by twothamendment »

tertius wrote: post #386
Jdam wrote: post #342

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As a European, I noticed that discussions held here about X in the US _always_ converge against their healthcare. "Salary in the US is higher" - but heir healthcare sucks "Weather in California is nicer than in Oslo" - But you don't have healtcare "New York is such a great city to live in" - But you're left for dead

Healthcare sucks AND it's ridiculously expensive.

My healthcare plan costs me $1,200/month for my family of 4. It went up nearly 30% this year and is expected to do the same next year. Give it a few years and it will be $2,000! I have a good job, but if that keeps going I won't have any choice but pay the fine/tax.

So back to the $1,000 phone. If all phones cost $1000 - I'd be more likely to go without one.

Re: With a $1k Price, Apple’s iPhone Crosses a Threshold

#550

Post by falsedan »

Aaargh20318 wrote: post #404
astura wrote: post #332

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Except it's really easy to accidentally destroy or lose a phone. That's the reason I don't buy expensive phones anymore, because I'll probably just drop it.

> Except it's really easy to accidentally destroy or lose a phone. In 20 years of owning different mobile phones, I've never accidentally destroyed or lost one. Maybe you are just clumsy or careless.

In twenty years of commenting on the internet, I've never insulted someone's physical abilities. Maybe you are just lacking empathy or deliberately clueless.
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