iPhone 3GS for Cheap. Don't Buy It!
By Harry McCracken | Tuesday, May 25, 2010 at 9:42 am
Wal-Mart has the 16GB iPhone 3GS for $97–the best deal on an iPhone to date, and a major technology bargain, period. But don’t buy one. At least not quite yet. Wait a couple of weeks for Steve Jobs’ WWDC keynote–he’s probably going to have something to say about $100 iPhones, and it’s possible it’ll involve an even more attractive offer than this one.
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May 25th, 2010 at 6:44 pm
This Walmart sale, as well as the fact that the iPhone 4 spyshots appeared to show a device with only 16 GB memory, could imply that the 16 GB iPhone 3GS will not stick around as the entry model for one more year. There will probably be a genuine, full speed iPhone 4 at the $99 price point.
More than the subsidized US price I’m interested in Apple’s wholesale prices and indeed unlocked, contract-free prices internationally. Apple had the nerve to raise average prices last year, going from the $500/$600 2008 price points to the $500/$600/$700 price points of 2009.
In places like Italy, where the iPhone is sold freely, its high price leads to a situation where the iPad basically costs the same or less than the iPhone, in spite of the iPad’s bigger screen and more powerful apps.
The iPhone should be cheaper than the iPad, and not just in skewed US subsidized terms, but in real terms and worldwide. It’s high time for iPhone prices to drop to $400 wholesale or even lower.
The fact that AT&T is currently subsidizing the iPhone with $400 and would either have to give away the iPhone for $1 (something Apple won’t like) or make its contracts cheaper (something AT&T won’t like) is a local issue and should not prevent Apple from entering mid-market in general.