iPhone 4 drops to $99 while Apple makes iPhone 3GS free with contract

Posted:
in iPhone edited January 2014
As was rumored, Apple has opted to keep the iPhone 3GS alive as a free phone with a new service contract, while the 2010 iPhone 4 is now $99 with a carrier subsidy.



Both the $99 iPhone 4 and the free iPhone 3GS carry internal storage capacities of 8GB. The iPhone 4 is built on the custom A4 chip, while the iPhone 3GS, first released in 2009, is powered by an earlier, less-powerful ARM processor.



Both devices are still capable of running iOS 5, Apple's next generation mobile operating system, though not all of the features of the update are available for every device. The iPhone 3GS was previously sold for $49 with a two-year contract.



The 8GB iPhone 4 is a newly redesigned low-cost model from Apple. Previously the handset was only available in capacities of 16GB and 32GB, but it has been replaced at those sizes by the the new iPhone 4S, which is also available in a high-end 64GB capacity.



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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 42
    neiltc13neiltc13 Posts: 182member
    iPhone 3GS has been free with contract for a good couple of years now. This isn't news, other than that it is now free with contract on a couple of other carriers.
  • Reply 2 of 42
    saareksaarek Posts: 1,520member
    Surprised about this, figured they'd either keep the cheap 3GS shell and bump up the CPU or keep the iPhone 4 design.
  • Reply 3 of 42
    lamewinglamewing Posts: 742member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by neiltc13 View Post


    iPhone 3GS has been free with contract for a good couple of years now. This isn't news, other than that it is now free with contract on a couple of other carriers.



    Not in the U.S. I guess we Americans aren't the only idiots who don't think about the rest of the world.







    My question is if the iPhone 4 8GB is $99 and the iPhone 4S 16GB is $199 ... what will be the price of the current iPhone 4 models?
  • Reply 4 of 42
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Hamlinator View Post


    By keeping the 3GS around, Apple is just acknowledging that the 4S is not the advance that everyone expected and that the 3GS is still a viable alternative.



    Can the 3GS run Siri? Survey says: No. Not to viable unless you want to make calls and send texts. They keep them around because they have them in the inventory and after a few months they will quietly disappear....
  • Reply 5 of 42
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Hamlinator View Post


    By keeping the 3GS around, Apple is just acknowledging that the 4S is not the advance that everyone expected and that the 3GS is still a viable alternative.



    Uhmm, not necessarily. The iPhone 3gs is still a very good phone (ymmv) and I bet many average non techie folks will pick a free 3gs over the disposable freebie of the week that carriers shovel out.
  • Reply 6 of 42
    sflocalsflocal Posts: 6,092member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Hamlinator View Post


    By keeping the 3GS around, Apple is just acknowledging that the 4S is not the advance that everyone expected and that the 3GS is still a viable alternative.



    Actually, this is proof that the lining on your tinfoil hat needs to be a bit thicker in order to focus your iHating propaganda thoughts into a more direct beam.



    Apple has a "free" iPhone for those that base everything on price, and yet whiners like you still manage to take even that story and spin it to suit your agenda.



    The current iPhone4 which is still a fantastic product is $99. Can't beat that considering what one gets. What's your spin on that?



    Go away troll.
  • Reply 7 of 42
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Hamlinator View Post


    By keeping the 3GS around, Apple is just acknowledging that the 4S is not the advance that everyone expected and that the 3GS is still a viable alternative.



    ???



    How in the world did you come to that conclusion?



    There are only 2 things that the iPhone 4S does not have that an iPhone 5 could have had:

    1) Larger screen

    2) NFC



    Regd. 1, Personally (and for most people) a larger screen is crap. I understand those who would like it though, so this is fair as a disappointment.



    2) Until someone finds a good use for NFC (and no, Google Wallet isn't it...at least Google's implementation is far lacking, and the infrastructure just isnt there yet) I am not going to cry about the lack of NFC.



    In every other way, the iPhone 4S is significantly better, and a huge improvement over any other phone. Just the camera (which, btw, outside of music, calling and texting, is probably the most used function in a phone) is an awesome upgrade. I would have been disappointed if it was just 8MP, but that doesnt seem to be the case, since the shutter speed and light capture have all been improved.
  • Reply 8 of 42
    n42n42 Posts: 34member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by addicted44 View Post


    ???



    How in the world did you come to that conclusion?



    There are only 2 things that the iPhone 4S does not have that an iPhone 5 could have had:

    1) Larger screen

    2) NFC



    Regd. 1, Personally (and for most people) a larger screen is crap. I understand those who would like it though, so this is fair as a disappointment.



    2) Until someone finds a good use for NFC (and no, Google Wallet isn't it...at least Google's implementation is far lacking, and the infrastructure just isnt there yet) I am not going to cry about the lack of NFC.



    In every other way, the iPhone 4S is significantly better, and a huge improvement over any other phone. Just the camera (which, btw, outside of music, calling and texting, is probably the most used function in a phone) is an awesome upgrade. I would have been disappointed if it was just 8MP, but that doesnt seem to be the case, since the shutter speed and light capture have all been improved.



    This is probably the most rational take on things I've seen today
  • Reply 9 of 42
    malaxmalax Posts: 1,598member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by lamewing View Post


    My question is if the iPhone 4 8GB is $99 and the iPhone 4S 16GB is $199 ... what will be the price of the current iPhone 4 models?



    What? Obviously, effectively immediately once the channels are clear, there will only be one iPhone 4 model (8GB) available for sale.
  • Reply 10 of 42
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by bigdaddyp View Post


    Uhmm, not necessarily. The iPhone 3gs is still a very good phone (ymmv) and I bet many average non techie folks will pick a free 3gs over the disposable freebie of the week that carriers shovel out.



    Agreed, it's a great phone compared to the sea of similarly low-res Android devices. Performance-wise, it's very similar to the iPhone 4, even on iOS 5. Only the screen, camera(s), and memory (apps & Safari tabs load from scratch more frequently on the 3GS) truly differentiate them.
  • Reply 11 of 42
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by n42 View Post


    This is probably the most rational take on things I've seen today



    I have an iPhone 3GS with AT&T and my contract will be up January 2012 [around Dr.King's Birthday]. If you were in my shoes would you:



    1. upgrade to an iPhone 4GS

    2. hold on and wait for an iPhone 5 [assuming it shows up sometime in 2012]

    3. do something else



    I like my iPhone although sometimes the AT&T dropouts get on my nerves!
  • Reply 12 of 42
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by addicted44 View Post


    last post in this thread



  • Reply 13 of 42
    chronsterchronster Posts: 1,894member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by sflocal View Post


    Actually, this is proof that the lining on your tinfoil hat needs to be a bit thicker in order to focus your iHating propaganda thoughts into a more direct beam.



    Apple has a "free" iPhone for those that base everything on price, and yet whiners like you still manage to take even that story and spin it to suit your agenda.



    The current iPhone4 which is still a fantastic product is $99. Can't beat that considering what one gets. What's your spin on that?



    Go away troll.



    One has been able to get as much and more for $99 for over a year now. Things like the Samsung Fascinate from Verizon were at $50 in no time. Comparatively, and using your logic, you can't beat that considering what one gets...
  • Reply 14 of 42
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by lamewing View Post


    My question is if the iPhone 4 8GB is $99 and the iPhone 4S 16GB is $199 ... what will be the price of the current iPhone 4 models?



    You can now get an unlocked iPhone 4 8GB for $549 and unlocked iPhone 3Gs 8GB for $375. Before this update, the unlocked prices for iPhone 4 16GB used to be $649, and for 32GB $749.



    I wonder when the 4s will be available unlocked.
  • Reply 15 of 42
    christophbchristophb Posts: 1,482member
    3GS is dead. I read it here yesterday. . . Lemme find the post.



    Edit: oh iPod Classic too.
  • Reply 16 of 42
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by ChristophB View Post


    3GS is dead. I read it here yesterday. . . Lemme find the post.



    But it isn't. They're still selling it.







    If you'd told me that I would be able to see a line that read "From $0" on the Apple Store, even two years ago, I'd've laughed.



  • Reply 17 of 42
    christophbchristophb Posts: 1,482member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Tallest Skil View Post


    But it isn't. They're still selling it.



    I'm so confused. I don't understand why Apple isn't walking away from profit. It makes no sense.



    Edit: but the good news is the new iPhone supports WiMax and is exclusive to Sprint. Whew!
  • Reply 18 of 42
    john.bjohn.b Posts: 2,742member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Hamlinator View Post


    By keeping the 3GS around, Apple is just acknowledging that the 4S is not the advance that everyone expected and that the 3GS is still a viable alternative.



    My 3GS has been laggy, even sleepy, with the recent iOS updates. I couldn't imagine running iOS5 on a 3GS.
  • Reply 19 of 42
    auxioauxio Posts: 2,717member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by addicted44 View Post


    There are only 2 things that the iPhone 4S does not have that an iPhone 5 could have had:

    1) Larger screen

    2) NFC



    3) True 4G LTE



    It's yet to be seen if just tweaking the antenna architecture on the phone, but staying with a 3G network, will give the same speed bump as actually going to 4G LTE (as Apple claims). Especially one or two years down the road.



    But, in general, I agree. I'm not sure exactly what else people were expecting...
  • Reply 20 of 42
    auxioauxio Posts: 2,717member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by John.B View Post


    My 3GS has been laggy, even sleepy, with the recent iOS updates. I couldn't imagine running iOS5 on a 3GS.



    I've been doing it for the past couple of months. Feels about the same as running iOS4 - somewhat choppy for some things, but still usable overall.
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