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The benefit's of buying a iPhone outright . . You will shudder ;)

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I found this article No, U.S. smartphone costs aren't highest in the world and it got me thinking, is to all those crimps, that told me I'm silly buying my iPhone outright, well, I'm in front and always will be.
Yes i did buy my iPhone outright and paid $799 for it and i use pre-paid every month. For myself, i use $30 sometime $40 a month to recharge my phone. I feel good in knowing, I'm never going to go over on Data, as if i look as if i do, i can use part of the $30/40 to add more Data, and that comes off the balance of what i have left on calls.
Looking at that article, and the prices people pay in the term of the contract is to me astronomical and I'm glad that I'm on Pre-Paid.
For me thats $800 for the iPhone, $360 x 2 = $720 over 2 years. $800+$720= $1520 over 2 years, so I'm way ahead of anyone there.
Ohhh they say, but i can trade mine in after 2 years and get a new iPhone. Well i still OWN my iPhone and i can SELL my iPhone and get some $ back and put it towards a new iPhone. So say $300 for a 2 year old iPhone take that off $799 = $499 for my new iPhone + $720 over 2 years = $1220 over 2 years and now I'm nearly or over $1000 better off than anyone on a plan.

So at the end of the day, think about your contract and see if you really need it, and ill never ever go on a contract again.
To be totally honest, i cannot remember the last time i paid a telephone bill for a Mobile phone :)
 

chscag

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A lot of folks can't afford to buy an iPhone up front so they opt for the two year subsidized contract. I can get an AT&T 16 GB iPhone 5 for $199.99 on a two year contract. Of course that would also incur data fees, taxes, use fees, etc.

It's like buying a new car Brent. It's great if you can put down $25,000 cash for a new Camry and not worry about monthly payments. But not too many folks can afford to do that so they buy it with a 60 month loan after a down payment. After the 5 years is up, they do it all over again.

Same with the iPhone. ;)
 
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I too usually get phones outright and paid full price for my iPhone but that was because I was about six months out from an upgrade but could not wait. It's always nice to have an upgrade in your pocket for a later date. Great breakdown of potential savings btw.
 
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I don't understand what you are comparing your rates to. my contract and cost for the phone combined come up to the same $1520.00 over 2 years that you are talking about and at the end of the contract the phone is mine so it can still be sold to get some money back.
 
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The savings come from the (normal) much higher cost of plans for the iPhone versus no-data prepaid plans like Brent is talking about.

I got my iPhone 4 for $100 (bought it used), but I had to take over his three-year contract (which had two years left on it. At the time his plan was $80/month (about normal for a generous data allowance plus all the other usual stuff iPhones need like Visual Voicemail, caller ID etc). I got it down to $55/month due to some changes with the carrier but that's still an average of $60x24 = $1440 (plus the $100 used cost).

If I'd bought the iPhone 4 outright for let's say $700 and used a no-data $35/month plan, I'd have paid 24x35 = $840 (plus $700 = $1540, about the same really).

The big advantage I'd have had with the latter arrangement is the freedom to change carriers at any time without penalty, and the freedom to travel to the states and use SIMs down there or in other countries as I pleased. I'd have also been free to sell the unlocked iPhone for nearly what I paid for it at any point in those two years.

Luckily my carrier turned out to be a good un and unlocked my iPhone after 90 days as a customer so I didn't suffer much. The iPhone 4 is still worth more than I did pay for it (in my case) where I live so I lucked out and am ahead of the game for the most part, but my US friends routinely pay $80-120 a month depending on their data and talk usage, and they end up way overpaying (IMO) for the iPhone compared to buying it outright.

(but as pointed out not many have the discipline to save up and wait!) :)
 
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A lot of folks can't afford to buy an iPhone up front so they opt for the two year subsidized contract. I can get an AT&T 16 GB iPhone 5 for $199.99 on a two year contract. Of course that would also incur data fees, taxes, use fees, etc.

Yea can understand that Charlie, this was more from what a mate said to me the other day, then lopping upon this Article today. And as you can see from it, here in Australia, we are one of the ones on the higher up prices.
And on the plans, here they aren't very lenient on anyone, if your on contract and go over the data limit. I worked it out the other day on a friends contract, and her daughters bill went from $50/mth plan up to $160 because of over use and ended up being 30¢/1mb

I don't understand what you are comparing your rates to. my contract and cost for the phone combined come up to the same $1520.00 over 2 years that you are talking about and at the end of the contract the phone is mine so it can still be sold to get some money back.

Ummm did you read the article at all and down the middle of the page, where it mentioned countries and the prices, and im guessing they where average prices.

The savings come from the (normal) much higher cost of plans for the iPhone versus no-data prepaid plans like Brent is talking about.

No not really. The Pre-Paid i can get here in Aust through the biggest Telco. Looking at the $40 Pre-Paid. Gives me 700MB data and $550 worth of text and calls. Free Talk and Text to any Landline 6pm-6am and if i recharge before the 30days, it rolls over.
Now if i get close to going over Data, im sent a Txt msg and i can then use part of the $40, lets say ill use $10 that will give me another 500mb data, but then drops the Call $ amount down.
At the end of the day, i still think im on a good wicket ;)

I got my iPhone 4 for $100 (bought it used), but I had to take over his three-year contract (which had two years left on it. At the time his plan was $80/month (about normal for a generous data allowance plus all the other usual stuff iPhones need like Visual Voicemail, caller ID etc). I got it down to $55/month due to some changes with the carrier but that's still an average of $60x24 = $1440 (plus the $100 used cost).

You did alright out of that one Chas, pity we cant always find prices like that when we want.
 
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In the UK there are several deals but to give a general US comparison:
iPhone 5 16gb £29 upfront, £29 per month for 24 months. Total cost of ownership £725 (roughly $1100)

That includes unlimited data, 500 minutes, 5000 sms.

You own the phone so you can sell it at to fund the next one as required
 
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I think that your contract price should drop once you've completed the 2 year agreement and the phone subsidy has been paid off. With AT&T and Verizon, you pay your $199 for your new iPhone, then the subsidized price for the next 2 years, and if you decide to continue using that phone for past when your contract expires, you are still paying the subsidized contract plan, which is %^#$%^@#^%$, and just lining pockets with money.
 
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May be different in the US but in the UK you can switch down your contract once your minimum term is up.
 

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For me thats $800 for the iPhone, $360 x 2 = $720 over 2 years. $800+$720= $1520 over 2 years, so I'm way ahead of anyone there.
I paid $310 for a much better phone :)P) and over the course of two years, I pay $936 for the contract ($39/mo) for a total of $1246. Way ahead indeed. ;)
 
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May be different in the US but in the UK you can switch down your contract once your minimum term is up.

It is different. When your contract is up, you continue to pay the same rates. When our contracts are up, I'm planning on looking into ways to trim our bill way down. I'm hoping T-Mobile's service will be good enough. For 3 phones, I'm looking at $100/month vs my current $180/month with AT&T (that $180 is after a 24% employer discount). I'm sick of this abusive subsidized model where I continue to pay inflated rates even when my contract is done and I don't want/need to upgrade. I'm fine with my iPhone 4S and plan to keep it for at least another year.
 

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May be different in the US but in the UK you can switch down your contract once your minimum term is up.

It is different as member lifeisabeach pointed out. The only real viable choice to get the cost down is do like Brent has done and go with a pre-paid provider after your contract is up. I've looked into several pre-paid plans which offer very good savings. The only downside is the inconvenience of having to refill every month. However, there are several pre-paid providers who are now using PayPal or automatic credit card debiting for the reoccurring payments.
 
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Where does this notion of not being able to sell your phone that's on contract come from? That's false. You can turn around and sell it right away if you wanted.

There are too many exceptions and plan variations for one example to be definitive proof of anything. Plus, it's like comparing apples and oranges.
I've upgraded phones once a year, and have always been on contract with AT&T since the iPhone 3G first came out. When the 4 came out, I sold my 3g under plan, and used the money to pay for the 4 32gb version. When the 4s came out, I kept the 4 and gave it to another family member simply by switching sims(1 year under a 2 year plan). Then, I sold the 4 and gave them my 4s, with the 4 completely covering the cost for a new Galaxy Note2. I will most likely be keeping this phone for a while though. It's a beast.

Also, at my coverage cost, it's almost $43 before tax with affiliation discount, and includes unlimited data+text, and 750 minutes a month with unlimited rollover. Considering the base price of an iPhone at $200($215 after tax), and $43($47 after tax), my 2 year contract costs $1343, and I have absolutely NOTHING to worry about. I'm locked in. Price can't suddenly change on MY contract. Don't need to worry about surpassing an allowance, or any extra fees.

Here's the thing. Take my example: $215 for new phone, $1128 for term contract after tax.
And, take another person who pays for their phone out right and uses it for two years: $650 for phone, and $30-$40 per month on pre-paid for something EQUIVALENT = $775-$1034 after tax. I don't care about dirt cheap plans that offer nothing.
At the end, I make a "profit" off my phone, while that person take a loss. How much of a loss? Let's use my experience: Paid $215, sold for $350 cash. He pays $775, and sells for the same price as I did with mine, and takes a $425 "loss."

Keeping up?
  • $215+$1128=$1343 after two years. Subtract iPhone sale of $350= $993 cost of my 2-year contract
  • $650+$775(cheapest!)= $1425 for equivalent data package on prepaid. Sell phone after 2 years for 350= $1075 total price for iffy quality(possible), inconvenience(probable), and worry(definite).
If only he didn't have to pay that full price, he would have been far ahead.

It's not as black and white as everyone makes it out.
 
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This post reminds me that I've been off contract for over a year now. I really should look into what I want to do. Some days, I'd be happy to just re-activate my Moto RAZR v3 on a prepaid plan and be done with it. I'd be happy just using the iP4 as an iPod touch and syncing my calendar and email when I'm near WiFi - which is most of the time I'm not outdoors.
 
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I wish I could just pay data and have a few minutes. I hardly use my iPhone for calls. I probably use less than 50 minutes a month, yet it is 1/3 of my monthly bill.
 

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We're just the opposite. Between my wife and I we consume close to 1500 minutes a month of air time alone. I use my cell as a home phone and combo business number which is the reason why. I could probably make do with 1 GB of data a month as long as I don't need to use it as a hot spot.
 
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The only downside is the inconvenience of having to refill every month. However, there are several pre-paid providers who are now using PayPal or automatic credit card debiting for the reoccurring payments.

I dont see this as a downfall, to me, 1 it reminds me that this thing still costs me $, and 2 my Telco has a App, that i have set up as automated to renew at the end of the month, but if i have got lots of Data and calls left, ill renew with 2 taps and a 4 digit pin code so i can get all that rolled over to the next month.

I wish I could just pay data and have a few minutes. I hardly use my iPhone for calls. I probably use less than 50 minutes a month, yet it is 1/3 of my monthly bill.

Thats the beauty down here Stretch, within out Pre-Paid plans, we can have Talk & Text, Talk & Data Encore, Talk, or Text and they all offer some variation in flag fall, for calls, ¢/min for calls, certain # Txt and so on, so we have a variety of options, and i use the the Encore option, and find that works for me, as 90% of people i msg, use iPhone, so iMessage takes over there, which gives me a better ¢/min on calls.
 
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I don't see this as a downfall, to me, 1 it reminds me that this thing still costs me $, and 2 my Telco has a App, that i have set up as automated to renew at the end of the month, but if i have got lots of Data and calls left, ill renew with 2 taps and a 4 digit pin code so i can get all that rolled over to the next month.
I like the convenience of being able to refill over the phone via an app like that. I'm not sure if I've seen anything with those features where I live, but then again, I haven't gone out of my way to search.


Thats the beauty down here Stretch, within out Pre-Paid plans, we can have Talk & Text, Talk & Data Encore, Talk, or Text and they all offer some variation in flag fall, for calls, ¢/min for calls, certain # Txt and so on, so we have a variety of options, and i use the the Encore option, and find that works for me, as 90% of people i msg, use iPhone, so iMessage takes over there, which gives me a better ¢/min on calls.

Do you ever have issues with messages being delayed in both sending and receiving, when switching between regular texts and iMessages? I had this problem when I went to Europe, and the text received and sent times would be all jumbled up. For example, If I sent 3 sexts, text one, text two, and text three over a few minutes, the delay would be long enough for me to get to the 3rd message before they were received by the other member, and when they received it, they would be in random order. I talked to the a Vodafone rep at the store, and he said it's a typical issue with iPhones. I never had that issue with other phones, but I don't believe either one had their own messaging system. It only happened when I would send texts to other family with iPhones.
 
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I like the convenience of being able to refill over the phone via an app like that. I'm not sure if I've seen anything with those features where I live, but then again, I haven't gone out of my way to search.

Well using this little helpful tip i have this thing bookmarked
Code:
site:itunes.apple.com/us/
and i wrote Vezion space before it and i found

https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/my-verizon-mobile/id416023011?mt=8
For Verzion
And this for AT&T not sure who you are with
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/myat-t/id309172177?mt=8

So there are Apps out there that Telco make for customers :)



Do you ever have issues with messages being delayed in both sending and receiving, when switching between regular texts and iMessages? I had this problem when I went to Europe, and the text received and sent times would be all jumbled up. For example, If I sent 3 sexts, text one, text two, and text three over a few minutes, the delay would be long enough for me to get to the 3rd message before they were received by the other member, and when they received it, they would be in random order. I talked to the a Vodafone rep at the store, and he said it's a typical issue with iPhones. I never had that issue with other phones, but I don't believe either one had their own messaging system. It only happened when I would send texts to other family with iPhones.

Never seen that before, but if Vodafone says so, then its true ;)
 
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For me its a no brainer I keep signing my contract with a new phone every 2 years to keep my no longer offered unlimited plan which will keep me grandfathered in.
 

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