Apple will offer free iPhone 3GS with 2-year mobile contract - report

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  • Reply 21 of 115
    noirdesirnoirdesir Posts: 1,027member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by asdasd View Post


    It will probably be free on all plans. Only in America - apparently - is there one plan for all users of a phone. If the carriers can get it fro $200 less they can take that off their plans.



    So if AT&T gets it for $49 less than before, that means that all carriers get it for $200 less? Not sure I follow that logic.
  • Reply 22 of 115
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by OriginalG View Post


    At the very least they could change the housing on the thing so people don't look like they're using an outdated phone.







    Seriously. You said that. You actually said that.
  • Reply 23 of 115
    curmudgeoncurmudgeon Posts: 483member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by bartfat View Post


    Why in the world would Apple sell a phone that is almost immediately going to get outdated. At the least they have to put an A4 if not A5 in there, so when they come out with future software updates, their customers don't feel like they've been cheated, like Samsung and the rest.



    Because there might be customers that want to own it?
  • Reply 24 of 115
    asdasdasdasd Posts: 5,686member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Tallest Skil View Post


    Can. But won't.



    The world is not the US.
  • Reply 25 of 115
    cloudgazercloudgazer Posts: 2,161member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by jukes View Post


    This sounds very un-Apple. They've never shown much interest in continued support for old hardware in terms of the OS and application minimum hardware requirements.



    Actually you're quite quite wrong here. Consider the venerable Ti-Book launched in 2001 itsupported Tiger which was released in 05 and supported until 07 - not including security updates which continued as far as I know. That's in spite of the fact that the hardware had gone from 32bit RISC to 64bit Intel.

    The 2002 Ti-Book supported Leopard which ran until 2009.



    6 or 7 years of OS support is actually pretty damned good, because that support isn't illusion - so long as the memory was upgraded those Ti-Books ran the later OSes astonishingly well.



    In the mobile space it's even more glaring. The 3GS has support for iOS 5 so will be getting regular updates out to 2012 at least. HTC recently refused to update a popular model to Gingerbread even though it was under a year old, and had in fact launched after gingerbread - they were later made to backtrack.



    Apple are pushing app requirements though, they recommend that developers should require the last version of iOS4. That means that iPhone-1 owners will soon be unable to buy software on the App Market - but hey - sounds like they'll be able to get a free 3GS anyway!
  • Reply 26 of 115
    curmudgeoncurmudgeon Posts: 483member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by OriginalG View Post


    At the very least they could change the housing on the thing so people don't look like they're using an outdated phone.



    Ooh, peer pressure. What will the other kids think of me? Perhaps they'll think I have an extra $200 in my pocket. Nah.
  • Reply 27 of 115
    MacProMacPro Posts: 19,718member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Tallest Skil View Post






    Seriously. You said that. You actually said that.



    Good one.
  • Reply 28 of 115
    steven n.steven n. Posts: 1,229member
    I hope for an "iPhone 3G S+". Take the iPhone 3G S and make the following changes:



    1) Apple A4 to lower costs and standardize as well as picking up some better power management.

    2) 512 MB of memory.

    3) CDMA/GSM options.

    4) Whatever changes they did to make standby power on the iPhone 4 so kick a$$.



    Thats it. No Gyro. No nicer display. Same case. Same battery but better standby time. Processes should allow for a significantly lower cost. Keep it at 8GB Flash to force adoption to iCloud for off line storage options.



    Price $0 -> $49 with 2 year contract.
  • Reply 29 of 115
    cloudgazercloudgazer Posts: 2,161member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Tallest Skil View Post






    Seriously. You said that. You actually said that.



    He did!



    One thing that hasn't been pointed out is that this actually impacts the Samsung suit. By keeping the 3GS in circulation they eliminate any claim by Samsung that the infringement on trade dress no longer matters.



    For as long as their competitors continue to copy the 3GS it may make legal sense for Apple to sell it.
  • Reply 30 of 115
    trrlltrrll Posts: 18member
    I hardly see the point of these evidence-free "analyst reports," which mostly seem to be obvious guesses. Yes, at some point, Apple doubtless will let its phone partners offer a fully subsidized iPhone with contract, which will be a cheaper or older model. The only question is when. There is nothing in the article to suggest that the analyst's guess is any better than anybody else's.
  • Reply 31 of 115
    icibaquicibaqu Posts: 278member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by aross99 View Post


    I just don't see why the cost of the phone ($99 or $49 or even $0) is such a big deal when it requires a minimum of a $15/monthly data plan?



    Who is going to say "I'm not willing to spend $49 on an iPhone, but I will add $15/month to my cell phone bill?"



    This only makes sense if they finally drop the requirement for the data plan. Before you say "what is the point of an iPhone with out 3G data", there are plenty of people (including many high school and college students) who are constantly surrounded with WiFi and won't spend the $15/month for a data plan, but who want an iPhone...



    I would have paid $199 for iPhones for my kids years ago if I could have eliminated the data plan - it would have been CHEAPER than buying them iPod touches...



    Because if you have already gone in to get a phone that does email/web, and they look pretty much the same, and one is FREE, then you're going to go with the free one.



    I think you are thinking of this too much in geek terms.
  • Reply 32 of 115
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by asdasd View Post


    The world is not the US.



    But telecoms are telecoms. O2 are pirates, just as bad as AT&T are.



    On a lighter note, Happy Fourth Birthday to my Day One 2007 iPhone.
  • Reply 33 of 115
    boogabooga Posts: 1,082member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by cloudgazer View Post


    Apple already has functioning supply chains and assembly plants for the 3GS, so why shut those lines down for as long as the 3GS is capable of running the latest OS and is selling well? At some point they may indeed decide to upgrade the internals to an A5 - but it will depend on how that would affect the tooling on the supply line.



    As for immediately outdated - the 3GS runs iOS 5, and supposedly runs it pretty well.



    Indeed... if anything, iOS 5 seems to run faster than iOS 4 on the same device. I think they learned their lesson with the iOS4-on-iPhone3 fiasco.
  • Reply 34 of 115
    asdasdasdasd Posts: 5,686member
    Lets remember the 3G-3GS was a major update in the processor. The iPhone 4 was sold on it's looks. If the iPhone 4 can handle an OS, so can the 3GS
  • Reply 35 of 115
    asdasdasdasd Posts: 5,686member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Steven N. View Post


    I hope for an "iPhone 3G S+". Take the iPhone 3G S and make the following changes:



    1) Apple A4 to lower costs and standardize as well as picking up some better power management.

    2) 512 MB of memory.

    3) CDMA/GSM options.

    4) Whatever changes they did to make standby power on the iPhone 4 so kick a$$.



    Thats it. No Gyro. No nicer display. Same case. Same battery but better standby time. Processes should allow for a significantly lower cost. Keep it at 8GB Flash to force adoption to iCloud for off line storage options.



    Price $0 -> $49 with 2 year contract.



    I can see it get a rename - iPhone classic, and then have different price points with those options.
  • Reply 36 of 115
    shompashompa Posts: 343member
    Apple would never allow a "free" Iphone. It cannibals the value of the brand.



    It would be strange if Apple used the 3Gs frame since the parts in a 3Gs is not much cheaper then an Iphone4.



    A cheaper Iphone SKU should be a Iphone4 without Retina display and only 4 gig flash memory. Flash memory is not important with Icloud and is one of the most expensive component in the Iphone.



    A4 chip is cheaper for Apple then the 3Gs chip since A4 is an Apple own design. A4 also have NOVA SIMD extensions that Apple will optimize more for.



    Apple have a huge edge over Android since they don't have NOVA in their ARM processors. And Android can never optimize the graphic layer since every Android vendor can customize their GUI.
  • Reply 37 of 115
    stevetimstevetim Posts: 482member
    It is doubtful to me that Apple would give phones away ... even for 2 year contract ... It cheapens their brand.



    They MAY sell to ATT/Verizon at a discount and let them give it away, but even that is doubtful as they protect their product brands even for promotions and giveaways.



    This sounds like very bad analysis to me. The "expected" statement in the article is certainly unsupported.
  • Reply 38 of 115
    hittrj01hittrj01 Posts: 753member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Tallest Skil View Post


    But telecoms are telecoms. O2 are pirates, just as bad as AT&T are.



    On a lighter note, Happy Fourth Birthday to my Day One 2007 iPhone.



    Congrats! It's hard to believe it's been that long! I remember waiting in line with my brother at our Apple Store just so I could be there when he got his. I didn't have the $700 for the 8GB model at the time, but when they dropped the price to $399, I saved up every last cent of birthday money that fall and picked one up. Best tech decision of my entire life.
  • Reply 39 of 115
    hittrj01hittrj01 Posts: 753member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by asdasd View Post


    Lets remember the 3G-3GS was a major update in the processor. The iPhone 4 was sold on it's looks. If the iPhone 4 can handle an OS, so can the 3GS



    Yeah, the 3GS has lasted longer in technology terms than it ever has had the right to. The iPhone 4 does still have double the memory and a faster CPU, so it will handle things better. AFAIR, though, the GPU is the same in both, which might explain how the 3GS looks to perform almost the exact same. It doesn't, as there are little graphical glitches and stutters here and there, but it is unbelievable how much life Apple was able to put in the 3GS.
  • Reply 40 of 115
    cvaldes1831cvaldes1831 Posts: 1,832member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by asdasd View Post


    The world is not the US.



    Don't even bother trying to school these types.



    There's a certain percentage of American readers here who have zero awareness of the world. They've probably never traveled outside of their home state. The only thing they know is the stuff happening in their backyard or across the street.



    They score zero points on the global worldview.



    Quarter and after quarter, Apple reports sales and for quite a while, they have announced that half of Apple's revenue comes from international markets. These people obviously don't have any interest in learning about how Apple conducts its business, which would help them understand the larger picture about Apple's business plan and focus. These people think that Apple solely caters to their desires and are in total denial about the existence of other humans. Entitlement? Perhaps.
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