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Prepaid iPhone in the works? Tim Cook's comments paraphrased and interpreted

by Chris Ward Mar 1st 2011 at 6:00AM

Now with prepaid?Apple's Chief Operating Officer, Tim Cook, recently spoke with Bernstein Research analyst Toni Sacconaghi about Apple's possible plans to introduce cheaper or prepaid iPhones. While Sacconaghi didn't give any exact quotes, he paraphrased a few of Cook's thoughts.

"Tim stopped short of explicitly stating that Apple would pursue a lower price iPhone," Sacconaghi said, but Cook said Apple is "working hard to 'figure out' the prepaid market." According to Sacconaghi, Cook and Apple want to dispel the impression that Apple's products are "just for the rich." Cook also called China "a classic prepaid market," which certainly indicates Apple is interested in pursuing that market.

The use of prepaid SIM cards for iPhones isn't new in some parts of the world -- such deals are common in a number of countries in Europe -- but you do pay handsomely for the iPhone if you choose this route.

Perhaps rumors about smaller iPhones aren't correct, and instead Apple will find a way to make a same-sized model with cheaper parts. Or perhaps earlier models will be sold on the prepaid market instead of, as in the past, with regular contracts.

[via Engadget]



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13 Comments

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Kmama89

I purchased my iPhone3G from Craigslist for $150.00 I didn't need a data plan because of the wifi. I found a company, Fuzion Mobile. They offer and Unl. Talk/Text plan for $40. So EASY!

March 30 2011 at 1:09 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Mavr¥k

I live in the UK and have a pre-paid iPhone.

Over the course of 18 months (the length I would commit to if I was on contract) it actually works out cheaper. You pay a hefty price to begin with (£400+) but instead of paying £35pm I only need to top-up a minimum £10pm so over 18 months (inc. cost of iPhone) I am going to save about £200, not to mention I can top-up when it suits me, and I am not tied to a contract so can trade in and upgrade anytime.

March 01 2011 at 12:22 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
PRW

I don't care about the cost of the phone as much as I do the cost of the service. I use my iphone as a phone rather rarely and would love a pre-paid option that would allow less expensive phone service.

March 01 2011 at 11:32 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
jaysunem

I have never understood the attraction of a "cheap" iPhone. If you can't afford the one-time initial cost to buy one, how in the world are you going to be able to afford the $70+ monthly fee?

I would gladly pay $200-300 for the phone hardware if I could then use pre-paid talk minutes. I don't want a data plan at all. As of now, I use an older 3G that a friend gave me with a GoPhone SIM and it works great.

March 01 2011 at 10:34 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
2 replies to jaysunem's comment
Matt J

$70 a month is an absurd minimum contract, and I don't know why Americans put up with it. I pay about a third of that a month, and I get 1GB of data with inclusive tethering.

March 01 2011 at 6:41 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Rob

I've always understood cheaper iPhone to mean both less expensive device (in terms of manufacturing) and a cheaper monthly rate. That's where the pre-paid rumors come from; pre-paid carries like Virgin offer unlimited data/text starting at $25/month, maxing out at $60 for unlimited everything- substantially cheaper that current iPhone offerings. There's no point to it otherwise.

March 01 2011 at 8:48 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
TIm

Sounds more like a job for a bank, where instead of commiting to a two-year binding contract, the customer basically takes a loan, receives an unlocked phone upfront and then pays a monthly rate for a year or two.

Not sure there is anything specific a phone should do or have in order to be more interesting for pre-paid users .. well .. besides being cheap that is.

T.

March 01 2011 at 9:35 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Sinecure Industries

I think this would be a good move for Apple, it would get iPhones in the hands of more people, specifically those that hate contracts, and let them pour some cash into the App Store. Everyone wins!

March 01 2011 at 8:39 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
wireless

The iphones can be used as prepaid phones now. Both my wife and I do this. I've been using the iphone as a pre-pay since the 2G and now use the 4G. Prepackaging the iphone as a prepay (at least the latest) starts a "Star Belly Sneetches" scenario.

March 01 2011 at 8:29 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Calexifan

With so many people (myself included) upgrading each summer to the newest iPhone model, wouldn't it be cool if Apple started offering a trade-in allowance and then using the old iPhones as "refurbs" that could be sold for prepaid use?

March 01 2011 at 6:24 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
3 replies to Calexifan's comment
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