Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, iPhone
Why you shouldn't buy the iPhone 3G on Friday
Time is a funny thing. A few weeks ago, eBay and Google were flooded with pricy first-gen iPhones starting at about $400 and people were snapping them up like crazy. Now, the same auction sites are showing dozens of listings from just $200 for 8GB iPhones.
The iPhone, as you will remember, debuted last year at $499 for a 4GB model and $599 for 8GB. Then there was the price drop, the $100 store credit and the introduction of the iPod touch. Soon after, the refurb units appeared at a slight discount, and then a bigger discount and then by March they were retailing $250 for the refurb 8GB model. Late adopters got great bargains by any stretch of the imagination, particularly those who mixed unlocking with creative data plan purchases.
Now it's time for the iPhone 3G to appear and it's horribly priced--as is every other subsidized smart-phone out there. Unless you live in the Netherlands, the rate plans range from bad to unspeakable. If you're in Scandinavia or New Zealand, our hearts go out to you.
From a price perspective, the cheapest way to use the phone is to buy it outright, unlock it and use it with inexpensive calling plans. Data plans, particularly, work best when you don't have to mortgage your children to afford to visit a few websites.
Using the iPhone outside the sanctioned plans involves giving up visual voice mail but otherwise it works pretty smoothly. It also involves running unfamiliar possibly scary software and taking risks with your unit that many iPhone users would prefer to avoid. Thus there exists the always growing market of third party unlocking and resales.
The iPhone dev team hints that they're ready to deliver unlocking and jailbreak tools as soon as Apple releases 2.0. Theoretically, you'll be able to use your current iPhone SIM and data plan (whether licit or less licit) with the new iPhone 3G. Obviously no one has been able to test or confirm this yet outside the dev team, which remains tightlipped.
In the US, AT&T is offering a "commitment-free" 3G iPhone for just $599. It's still locked to the network, and we're told you still need to activate it with AT&T before it can be used. Similar overpriced "commitment free" units will go on sale in Italy and a few other countries as well. You should be able to activate and then tell your carrier goodbye if I'm reading the terms correctly. I am not a lawyer.
So here's the question: do you want to pay the early adopter tax in order to play with shiny new iPhone? For US customers, the question reverts to bandwidth. If you can afford it, the new iPhone delivers 3G speeds. You won't have to call out for pizza as you wait for a website to load. But if you have the flexibility to wait, you can buy a better cheaper unit soon.
Other than 3G speeds and GPS, the new iPhone does not bring a lot to the table. It still has the same crappy 2 MegaPixel camera. It appears to have the same sized screen, the same speakers, the same microphone with a few cosmetic re-designs. If the speed issue isn't do-or-die for you, this is the upgrade to skip. You'll pay a lot of money for little more than a design bump.
Frankly, Apple would be foolish if they didn't have a better iPhone already in the works--one with a decent camera and other upgraded features. The 3G iPhone that goes on sale Friday, represents nothing more than last year's iPhone--that finally got delivered a year late.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 8)
shaun said 12:37PM on 7-08-2008
kind of negative...
I didn't buy iPhone 1.0 as I wanted to wait for the price to decrease and for a couple more features, so I'm happy to get 2.0 on friday.
Also I'm in the UK and I don't think the price is too bad, I really do feel for people in canada though
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Tannerozzy said 1:11PM on 7-08-2008
Yea, what the hell. I thought this site supported Apple? Crappy camera? The same speakers?
Unless you're in low light the camera actually has GREAT quality. And if you payed attention to WWDC or the guided tour you'd know that it has improved audio.
Apple's whole theme is premium product; premium price. Sure it might be a little costly but it's going to be a great device and I don't think you should be talking people out of buying it.
caleb said 1:37PM on 7-08-2008
@Tannerozzy - Maybe you haven't noticed; publicly Apple fans are very defensive of their favorite brand. But in private they will nit pick to death on the most minor of details because they have come to demand a very high standard.
I feel like the 3G iPhone is a huge failure. It has very limited additional capabilities. The v1.2 software along with the App store however is HUGE and is what the iPhone should have been to start with.
Kalessin said 6:05PM on 7-08-2008
I'm also in the UK and I'm happy with the whole experience. The tariff is fair and comparable with other networks, the fact that we can upgrade only a third of the way into an 18 month contract is pretty special too.
I don't mind paying £160 for a 16Gb iPhone 3G either, because I sold my 1st gen iPhone on eBay a week ago for £233, not much less that what I paid for it in January :)
The only thing I will wait for is the availability of a suitable InvisibleSHIELD -- the 3G ones aren't out for a week or two and that's only in the US, I'd imagine.
elby said 7:35PM on 7-08-2008
I don't think Erica is a Mac fan thats the problem. Do a Google image search for "Erica Sadun". You'll find her talking about how great The Zune is! Wow!
Here's one link:
http://digitalmedia.oreilly.com/pub/a/oreilly/digitalmedia/2006/11/16/five-zune-secrets-you-need-to-know.html?page=last&x-order=date
lanejasper69 said 12:47PM on 7-08-2008
Skipping, too many features not brought to the table or knocked off the table for that matter.
No thanks,
Lane
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fishbert said 12:41PM on 7-08-2008
2MP, not 2MB
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jacob said 2:28PM on 7-08-2008
maybe apple is smarter than you, erica...
- where are you going to put the lens for a 5 or 3.2 mp camera. i'm sure you already know that image quality is in the optics not the silly megapixel rating. buy a sony if its that important.
- 3g should have been in the first one, but that wasn't apple's fault. they couldn't have gotten the number of radios they needed even if at+t's 3g network was up to speed [it wasn't].
- gps in your hand/phone is great and many more people will realize how much in a couple weeks.
- how long have you been involved with apple? i would think long enough to know this is how they do things. and no, you don't have any clue when the next bump will occur to the model line. the best chance is that we'll see a 32gb model in 6 mo. in fact why don't you continue to tell everyone to wait for the next bump every six months erica. no one would ever buy anything.
- i can't understand why everyone has tunnel vision about the at+t plans. the iphone plans aren't exclusive [save vvm], nor were they on first gen. this phone costs the same as every other smart phone plan... yep, really. same as blackjackII and centro and etc. yes, there's a little mail-in rebate right now for those [hmmm,i wonder why??], but normally the totals on the receipt and monthly bill are identical.
deal with it people! our dollar doesn't go as far as it could right now. thanks to ... well i won't get into that.
"If the speed issue isn't do-or-die for you, this is the upgrade to skip." -es
what do you mean? network speed is the ONE thing that has an effect on how quickly every function on the phone works.!.
erica, this article sucks.
do or don't get the phone i don't care. i wouldn't use this article as a basis for your decision.
Live in 3D said 2:49PM on 7-08-2008
@jacob - I realize my post is somewhat hypocritical, but I have to ask. How does your post have anything to do with what fishbert said?
fishbert said 5:24PM on 7-08-2008
I think he just wanted to get high on the comments list. It's annoying behavior, but at least he kept it brief, eh?
jacob said 9:56AM on 7-09-2008
i mentioned the camera ;) didn't realize comment hierarchy was so important, eh?
Patrick Barnette said 12:45PM on 7-08-2008
Erica, I love you. You really tell it like it is and I respect that. I couldn't agree with you more. Im totally head over heels with everything Apple does even if it isn't the best we all know it could be. They set the bar and now they need to meet it again.
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fathomdarkblue said 12:46PM on 7-08-2008
you know what's sad?
i'm an Apple fanatic,
and i was/am really excited for for the new iPhone,
but it really is true,
the new 3g phone is not really a NEW iPhone,
it's just an updated one.
:(
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LuminousNerd said 1:59PM on 7-08-2008
It's not called the newPhone. It's the iPhone 3G. It's a revision of the old one.
I admit that some things could be better but all in all it's still the best phone in the world, and it has the vast majority of changes that people wanted in the first place. Now those same people are bitching about how they didn't change it.
It's a platform, not just a phone. The software will always be the biggest change. I don't know what you expected.
Doug said 5:01PM on 7-08-2008
I agree. I have a 1st gen and other than 3G and GPS, I see no reason to upgrade. The software is the big upgrade and I get that for free. If it was for not for the increase price in data plan and the in-store activation, I might break down and buy one. I think it is responsible to say no need to get this version if you are happy with the current model. Of course, if you are new to the iphone, jump in the water is warm. You will love the phone, but I doubt you will love the wait in the line to get it. Have fun.
Bitter much? said 12:46PM on 7-08-2008
Bitter much? Assume your comments are based on the fact that you didn't receive a test unit.
How sad ...
No, the features are not incredibly different from 2G to 3G but if you need speed, 3G is the only option.
Get over it!
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Robert Palmer said 12:56PM on 7-08-2008
But you know what happens when you assume ...
Bitter much? said 1:33PM on 7-08-2008
yeah - dumb ass comments like yours appear =)
NYCBhoy said 12:48PM on 7-08-2008
"Other than 3G speeds and GPS"
Isn't that exactly why most people are buying it??
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Odog4ever said 1:49PM on 7-08-2008
That's exactly why I'm buying it!
I can understand early adopters being bitter about getting screwed on that first price drop and not being able to utilize true GPS and 3G though. 1st generation products are always a gamble.