Rumors: iPhones without contracts? Probably not
Over at iPhone Matters, Tanner Godarzi asks whether you'll be able to buy an iPhone without a new contract, speculating that stores with extra inventory may allow just that. I think that's pretty unlikely. The commercials clearly state "Use requires a minimum new 2-year activation plan". Godarzi also suggests that you might be able to add an iPhone to an existing AT&T contract, which sounds at least a bit more realistic to me. Contract details, specifically the complete lack of them, continue to keep many possible customers away from making their purchasing decisions. How many people do you know who have said "I might get an iPhone--if it turns out I can afford it"? With rumors of $70 per month data plans, it could be a very expensive choice.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Fritz Laurel said 4:17PM on 6-06-2007
Isn't there some law in the US that phones sold in the US have to be able to be unlocked? I seem to remember someone talking about this a few months ago. But I admit I am but a child in these matters.
I wonder if you could get an iPhone without a data contract and just use it as a phone and use the wifi instead of any AT&T Edge network...
Cheers,
FL
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Christopher Price said 4:17PM on 6-06-2007
You're forgetting, AT&T has already loaded SKUs for the iPhone into their GoPhone prepaid system. The launch of GoPhone Prepaid Data also appears to confirm support for the iPhone.
- Christopher Price
http://www.phonenews.com
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Mephistophelian said 4:28PM on 6-06-2007
Phones in Australia have to be able to be unlocked on request by law.
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Bob said 4:27PM on 6-06-2007
$70 a month would be okay. Not great, but okay. That's cheaper than a lot of data plans right now anyway. $100? Forget it. I can carry my phone and my iPod for the next two years instead of shelling out $3100...
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Fornya said 4:40PM on 6-06-2007
What about the little disclaimer at the end of each of the current iPhone ads? "Use required minimum new 2 year activation plan"?
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Fritz Laurel said 4:47PM on 6-06-2007
Yeah, what's the word "new" in there for? Are they screwing all existing customers? And note that it doesn't say "contract" but it says "activation plan."
Hmmmmmm...
Cheers,
FL
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andy said 4:51PM on 6-06-2007
maybe you can unlock it, but only after you buy it and sign up for a contract, so as to abide the law, whos gonna sign a contract to unlock a phone and pay for another? maybe some rappers etc lol
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reuben said 5:35PM on 6-06-2007
eww. They better release a non-phone full screen iPOd someime soon. I don't need a $70/month plan for goodness sakes! I just want that gorgeous interface!
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David Baxtin said 5:37PM on 6-06-2007
To be honest, 30 bucks for a data plan is about right but steep in some respects. Why? It is EDGE. Which is like dialup for cell phones. If it had a 3G radio in there, there might be something to get excited about. I love the phone, don't get me wrong, but the price of the data and phone plan here is key. If they get greedy, I am not buying one. I will carry my cell phone and iPod separately.
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Old Boy said 6:23PM on 6-06-2007
Read into this what you will but - http://www.expansys.com/p.aspx?i=147638
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Catt said 8:46PM on 6-06-2007
I thought Apple was going to be carrying these phones as well so if that's the case don't you think one would be able to get a phone without getting a contract? I can see walking into an Apple store and picking one of these up without a contract but if you want to use the phone you will have to go sign up with the Cingular folks. At this point all this is conjecture but we'll figure this out few weeks for now. Not to worry...
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teo said 9:05PM on 6-06-2007
I just saw the "How To" ad on Colbert Report's re-air today (June 6). He made a couple okay iPhone jokes, nothing too notable. He took issue with the God Machine reference in the NYTimes article.
But! The disclaimer at the bottom, about the new plan? Gone. No tiny text at all. Just "Exclusively on (deathstar) at&t."
I wonder what that means...
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codeman38 said 9:37PM on 6-06-2007
I hope AT&T makes the iPhone available with a data-only plan, or at least a plan with a very low number of voice minutes. I do far more texting, e-mailing and web browsing than I do phone calls; I usually don't even spend an hour talking on my phone except in rare occasions, and even with rollover, I'd be paying for more than I ever used.
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codeman38 said 9:38PM on 6-06-2007
I usually don't talk on the phone more than an hour total *per month*, that is. I really should proofread my comments more carefully
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Tanner Godarzi said 9:40PM on 6-06-2007
Awesomeness, my first Apple post to get linked by TUAW. By the way it's Godarzi not Godarzj ;)
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