Filed under: Retail, Rumors, iPhone
Walmart to carry iPhone, but not 4GB, not for $99
Whither the cheap, low-capacity Walmart iPhone? MacRumors' Arnold Kim now anticipates that Walmart will be offering 8GB iPhones for $197, with no mention of smaller capacities or lower prices. The price is two bucks cheaper than at an AT&T retail store.
MacBlogz's Aviv Hadar mentioned late last week that their sources at AT&T said a 4GB model was "simply not true."
The original story, from BoyGeniusReport, was treated with a heavy dose of skepticism even from them, as the source wasn't one of their usual fonts of reliable information.
In related news, the San Jose Mercury News notes that Bay Area Walmart stores may begin carrying iPhone handsets before Christmas, citing employees and managers at those stores.
Otherwise, expect the devices to go on sale December 28.
[Via MacDailyNews.]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Jash Sayani said 12:43PM on 12-08-2008
This was something obvious. Apple discontinued the 4 Gig one long time ago and there's no reason for them to introduce it back. Instead they might me planning to release a 32 Gigabyte version.....
And as of the price, the iPhone 3G is said to become US$149 from Jan 09 onwards....
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Mark said 1:59PM on 12-08-2008
I just want them to let me have an iPhone at the discounted rate before I'm eligible for a phone upgrade in April... :(
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colouroflight said 10:30AM on 12-09-2008
Tell me about it. They're completely inflexible and complete jerks about it.
I'm not eligible for mine until August 2009!
Thom Douglas said 3:06PM on 12-08-2008
Is this an 8GB 3G? Or the 1st Gen. with aluminium backing?
-Thom
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G said 5:30PM on 12-08-2008
TFA shows a Walmart ad for an iPhone 3G.
And only 8GB makes sense. The cost difference between 8GB and 4GB of flash RAM is now just a few bucks, so they'd be losing some big money by discounting the phone $100 if that were the only difference.
Isaac said 8:26PM on 12-08-2008
I'll shell out a few extra dollars not to have to go to Wal-Mart any day.
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Kody said 11:00PM on 12-08-2008
I sell cell phones in the Walmart connection center at a Louisiana store. We have been hearing about the iphone coming to us for about a month now, and everything we are being told ( by store managers, AT&T Reps, and in the iphone training course) we will be selling a 4gb version of the iphone for $99 on or around Dec 26th. If not on that date it will be in very early January. One of the reason that we will be selling the iphone for $99 is customer simply wont spend the $200 dollars on a phone in our store, I have a hard time selling phones for $50 bucks.
I also found this another website reported by CNBC as of 12/5/08,
Wal-Mart to sell $99 iPhones in late Dec -NY Post
87 minutes ago - Xinhua Financial News
As of 12:00 AM ET 12/5/08
A cheaper version of Apple Inc's iPhone will be sold at Wal-Mart Stores Inc for $99 later this month, the New York Post said.
Two models of the popular device will hit shelves at the U.S. retail giant, the paper said, citing employees at several stores.
Employees also told San Jose-based Mercury News that the $99 iPhones would be 4-gigabyte models, and that Wal-Mart was attempting a pre-Christmas launch.
The iPhone went on sale starting July 11 at $199 for the model with 8 gigabytes of storage and $299 for the 16-gigabyte version.
However, iPhone users need to sign up with data service provider AT&T Inc for a plan that costs at least $30 a month for unlimited Web access and another $5 for 200 text messages or $20 for unlimited texting.
Wal-Mart has been gaining market share and clout in the U.S. recession as cash-strapped shoppers seek out its low prices.
Neither Apple nor Wal-Mart were immediately available to comment.
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Simon Arch said 12:57AM on 12-09-2008
I really like the iPhone, but the TCO is far too high to justify the purchase, no matter what kind of discounts they give at the register. I don't care if the handset comes free in a box of Cracker Jack. That's the least part of the overall cost of the phone. What I want is a lower monthly bill. Right now my wife and I have a pair of Motorola RAZRs and the bill for BOTH phones together is $70 a month. That's the same as the cost of one iPhone. That's the price which needs to come down (a LOT - at least 25%) before I consider buying an iPhone. $1,680 over a period of 24 months for a single phone...no, I'm sorry. It's just too much.
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Jeremy said 4:42PM on 12-10-2008
Actually, Wal-Mart now says they're selling a 512MB iPhone for $12...
http://www.maccomedy.com/wal-mart-to-sell-512mb-apple-iphone-for-12/
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