$99 iPhone arrives…at AT&T
Consumers finally get the choice of a $99 iPhone, but from AT&T, not Wal-Mart. Refurbished units are now available until December 31st for those inclined to get a cheaper iPhone.
AT&T announced the price drop for the refurbished units on its site while site Ars Technica takes credit for AT&T lowering its refurbished iPhone prices, citing an article where they declared that previous units of the same ilk were poor value. Wonder if they think the price drop of the 8GB to $99 and the 16GB to $199 all that much better value, considering you still have to sign up for the two-year contract with AT&T.
Unfortunately buying contract-less iPhones for cheap in the US is still going to be a pipe dream – after all, how else are consumers going to afford normally pricey phones without subsidies? American consumers have been spoiled with low phone prices – at the price of a contract. But few actually add up the actual price of a phone. If you combine the fees you need to pay in such a contract that ties you to a carrier, you’d probably be paying near or more than retail but in the long term.
Besides the contract, other thing you might have to think about is that the phones won’t get the same standard of AppleCare coverage a non-refurbished unit gets. The guarantee is for 90 days, but then it will vary by the amount of time left on the original unit. Refurbished units aren’t necessarily poorer in quality than non-refurbished ones. After all, if you send in a faulty new device, you will always get a refurbished replacement and not a new device with Apple anyhow. If you’ve already been considering an iPhone and was just waiting for a price drop, then $99 isn’t a bad deal for the 8GB. You’re unlikely to get a different deal from Wal-Mart, which will probably still sell the phones for the same prices and the same contract tie-ins.
Related posts:
