The Apple iPhone 3GS – Now just $97.00
Two questions. First, y’know that feeling you get when something fits perfect, looks terrific, cost about 15% more than the upper end of your price range, but you still end up pulling the trigger and buying it… only to see it on the sale rack, in your size, for half off two weeks later?
That’s a real sh*tty feeling.
And the second question: Do you think Steve Jobs is laughing right now?
The new Apple iPhone 4g is about to come out, so on Tuesday Apple cut the price of their iPhone 3Gs in half. What was $200 at its launch last summer, is now only $97.00. There’s something to be said about being able to charge your loyal customers an extra $100 over 12 months just for the hell of it.
And what if you were the guy who dropped $200 on a soon to be “out-dated” iPhone… say… in March? The only good news for you is that you aren’t alone. From CNNMoney.com: “Apple sold 8.3 million iPhones last quarter, more than twice the amount sold during the same period a year ago.” Damn.
Well, at least Mac aficionados can still hang their hats on the quality of their Mac products and the exclusive undeniable coolness that they offer. It’s not like they’re selling these $97 iPhones at Walmart or anything.
Oh wait. They are. Exclusively.
Thanks but no thanks. I’ll just stick with my $35/month pre-paid Virgin Wireless phone.
Last Question: Smart phones… cool? Or a total distraction?
I think that coolness doesn’t really come into play when you’re talking phones. I use an iPhone, but I use macs primarily, and I like the interoperability it has with iTunes/AppleTV/etc. I’ve got friends with everything from Droid Incredibles to RAZRs held together with duct tape, and I don’t see it as a personality reflection beyond how technical the person using it is. Phones are tools, and I think tools are exempt from rules of coolness and trends, at least when it comes to reflecting on its owner.
For a lot of people the type of phone you have is definitely a coolness thing. I admit, too, that I first got my iPhone 2 years ago because I thought it was cool. Not that it made me look cool per se, but that the device itself was just … cool. Which had not much to do with it’s popularity, but more of what it could do and how well it worked; it was “cool” from a technological standpoint for me.
That being said, I agree with Nate about the interoperability. Having a Mac myself, I love how well my iPhone, iTunes, and macbook work together. Literally everything I do is synced between my phone and my mac: contacts, emails, safari bookmarks, calendar events, etc etc. And it all happens so effortlessly. It really is awesome, especially when a friend with a PC says “So how can I get this to do this specific way of syncing” or some other advanced thing, and I can truly say “I don’t know” because it all happens automatically for me.
Finally, yea I guess if a smart phone is not important to you or anything then saving that $100 is a big deal. But to be honest, with the “4G” right around the corner, saving that $100 towards the more expensive phone is worth it for me. I will be upgrading my iPhone to the latest this summer and I recommend all my friends and family who are thinking of buying an iPhone to wait. Why? Because the 4G is a game changer in a lot of ways: 2 cameras (normal, and forward facing), better main camera, 2 microphones (for noise cancellation presumably), same processor as the iPad (aka faster), bigger battery, and completely updated look (first time since original iPhone) to name a few. The faster processor and bigger battery are especially important because of the new operating system they are releasing which enables multitasking and other intense things.
First off it won’t be called the iPhone 4G, because AT&T doesn’t have that technology. I am currently in the process of switching from an iPhone (had one since the day it came out) to the Droid Incredible. When I first got the iPhone it was because it was exclusive, cool and useful for my business, but now everyone has one and AT&T’s coverage is making my life hell. Although the 4th generation iPhone looks cool, I won’t buy it until it is on a network that can actually support its features. That said the Droid is easily cooler than the current iPhones and I don’t see anything compelling in the 4th generation one.
I believe some things stop being cool when everyone has them. I’ve never been into the I iphone. I’m thinking of getting that new KIN that just came out. But I just see phones like an accessory. I’d much rather worry about having a nice looking tie than a nice phone.
I definitely don’t need a smartphone. I sit in front of a computer all day, so it’s pointless.