What Kind of Deals Can We Expect on iPhone 5s in September? (1 Viewer)

[Johnny Angell]

I'm starting to notice deals being advertised. Walmart has an ad in the 8/03 paper offering a 16gb 5s for $99. In the same paper Target has the same price, same phone. Both require a 2-year contract and of course, there's no information on what the contract cost is.

I'd like to upgrade our 2 4s's, but I don't like the inflated monthly contract either. I wonder if those contracts have lowered since we got our 2 phones about 2 1/2 years ago?

 

[DaveF]

Historically, you can expect the 5s to drop down to the next tier. So look at the current 5c pricing: 16GB 5s equivalent for $99. It may be a different body style. With the rumors of larger screens, it's possible there will be a shakeup in pricing. But I doubt it. I think you'll see the 5s innards in a 5c body and it will be called the 6c. The new screen will be in the "6" top tier. I have no idea about clearance sales.

 

[DaveF]

Contracts depend on your Carrier and have nothing to do with Apple. Give your phone company a call and ask what happens when you upgrade phones.

 

[Johnny Angell]

Historically, you can expect the 5s to drop down to the next tier. So look at the current 5c pricing: 16GB 5s equivalent for $99. It may be a different body style. With the rumors of larger screens, it's possible there will be a shakeup in pricing. But I doubt it. I think you'll see the 5s innards in a 5c body and it will be called the 6c. The new screen will be in the "6" top tier. I have no idea about clearance sales.

Well, we are already seeing the 5s 16gb for $99. I was kinda hoping we'd see the 32gb for that price in September.

 

[Sam Posten]

This is going to be the biggest upgrade in the history of the iPhone, I personally think even mild tech enthusiasts are going to want the new hotness. The a8 and new cameras alone should be enough incentive even if you don't want a bigger screen,

 

[DaveF]

Well, we are already seeing the 5s 16gb for $99. I was kinda hoping we'd see the 32gb for that price in September.

you might. I can only look backwards and say has happened. I don't know what will happen But apple is stingy about storage pricing, so I don't assume a 32GB entry point this Fall. And you're seeing sales pricing on the 5s, which they're (presumably) trying to clear out for the (assumed) 6c and 6 coming this Fall. And while the (presumed) 6c will likely be a 5s in candy-coating, it will be a new phone with a new look and isn't in direct competition to the old model 5s.

 

[DaveF]

This is going to be the biggest upgrade in the history of the iPhone, I personally think even mild tech enthusiasts are going to want the new hotness. The a8 and new cameras alone should be enough incentive even if you don't want a bigger screen,

That's what was said about the 5s For all the amazing speed of the A7, I can't say I'm blown away by the feel of it. ios 7 still wants more than it can fully give. I imagine the A8 will really bring ios 7/8 into its full glory.What I know is that when I upgrade in 2015, the iPhone 6s with its A9 will crush the 6 and its then puny A8

 

[Sam Posten]

Sure poo-poo it all you want, but the economics are thought to be changing as well:http://www.cultofmac.com/289888/32gb-iphone-6-cost-just-199/?utm_campaign=twitter&utm_medium=twitter&utm_source=twitterHere's the deal tho: You are going to spend $2000 over the life of this phone. Why quibble about paying an extra $100 up front and get stuck with last year's model? I seriously don't get why people would want to make that trade even if they aren't tech enthusiasts...

 

[Johnny Angell]

Sure poo-poo it all you want, but the economics are thought to be changing as well:http://www.cultofmac.com/289888/32gb-iphone-6-cost-just-199/?utm_campaign=twitter&utm_medium=twitter&utm_source=twitterHere's the deal tho: You are going to spend $2000 over the life of this phone. Why quibble about paying an extra $100 up front and get stuck with last year's model? I seriously don't get why people would want to make that trade even if they aren't tech enthusiasts...

I finally called ATT to see if I could get a better monthly deal. If that call is any example, you don't negotiate with them. I don't think I"ve ever had them be flexible. They'll just show you there rate plans and find one that you like.

So I went with the mobile share plan with 1gb of shared storage with our two 4s phones. Before I agreed to the plan I had the car search our usage for the past year. The most we had used in any on month was .4gb. Our old plan was an old plan which was costing us $130 a month. That was not unlimited talk and text and had unlimited data. Unlimited data is not offered anymore, but we weren't using it. Our new plan is $75 a month. All prices are before taxes and fees. It's also not a contract. I have to admit I hated losing the unlimited plan. I know it's not logical, but I did.

I asked what it would cost to get to 16gb 5s phones. That would have upped the plan to $105 a month. She kept saying that was the only charge for the phone and I kept saying that can't be true, there's an upfront charge. Finally she revealed there was a $200 charge per phone. I did the math and figured out we would be paying an additional $1,120 to get two new phones. That's above and beyond the $75 plan. Over the 24 month contract we would be paying $2,920. Staying with the $75 plan means we will pay $1,800 over 24 months.

I really do believe that cell phone phones and the service have become ridiculously over priced. We stayed with our old phones. After looking at the figures I outlined above, getting a 5s for $100 instead of $200 isn't that big a difference. So we'll be staying with our 4s phones for at least another year.

That article you linked to outlining how little memory costs the manufacturer doesn't surprise me. Remember when DVRs came out? They charged and arm and a leg for a decent drive, even though they were cheap.

 

[Sam Posten]

Yep, when you see it in black and white it makes sense to get the best you can when you upgrade. If you are willing to live with the 4s for another year you can save decent dough.

 

[Johnny Angell]

Yep, when you see it in black and white it makes sense to get the best you can when you upgrade. If you are willing to live with the 4s for another year you can save decent dough.

I can save over $1100 and use phones that we've been very happy with to date. Let's face it, wanting the new phone is just that, a want, not a need. I'll put that $1100 in the the bank.

 

[DaveF]

Sure poo-poo it all you want, but the economics are thought to be changing as well:http://www.cultofmac.com/289888/32gb-iphone-6-cost-just-199/?utm_campaign=twitter&utm_medium=twitter&utm_source=twitterHere's the deal tho: You are going to spend $2000 over the life of this phone. Why quibble about paying an extra $100 up front and get stuck with last year's model? I seriously don't get why people would want to make that trade even if they aren't tech enthusiasts...

I thought you were saying everyone, even non-technophiles, would be breaking contracts to upgrade from the 5s they bought a year ago.Will everyone who's ready for their new-every-2 get it? Sure. Just like always

 

[DaveF]

I asked what it would cost to get to 16gb 5s phones. That would have upped the plan to $105 a month. She kept saying that was the only charge for the phone and I kept saying that can't be true, there's an upfront charge. Finally she revealed there was a $200 charge per phone. I did the math and figured out we would be paying an additional $1,120 to get two new phones. That's above and beyond the $75 plan. Over the 24 month contract we would be paying $2,920. Staying with the $75 plan means we will pay $1,800 over 24 months.

I've got AT&T and I don't understand this at all. Why would your plane increase $30/mo if you get new phones? We were three years into our iPhone 4 pair last fall and upgraded to a pair of iPhone 5s. There is the normal one-time with-contract cost, and the stupid $35 activation fee. But our plan didn't increase. Does AT&T lower your plan after two years, because the phone is paid for? If so, I was ripped off the third year of my iPhone 4.

 

[Johnny Angell]

I've got AT&T and I don't understand this at all. Why would your plane increase $30/mo if you get new phones? We were three years into our iPhone 4 pair last fall and upgraded to a pair of iPhone 5s. There is the normal one-time with-contract cost, and the stupid $35 activation fee. But our plan didn't increase.Does AT&T lower your plan after two years, because the phone is paid for? If so, I was ripped off the third year of my iPhone 4.

Does ATT lower your plan? No, of course not, not without asking. They're more than happy to collect all the money from you they can. Call 'em up. Ask for their best deal on the features you want. Get the price without upgrading. Then ask what happens when you upgrade your phones. Not only do you have to pay that up front $200 per phone, the monthly price will also increase and you will have a 24 month contract. You are not getting that $650 (or whatever it would cost) phone for just the $200.

Yes, you paid too much for the 3rd year of your iPhone. You didn't see an increase in your monthly charge when you upgraded because you were still paying an inflated 24 month contract rate on your 4's. You are paying every month for your upgraded phones.

When you got your 5s's, you called up ATT and said we want to upgrade our phones, right? You didn't ask if you could get a lower rate if you didn't upgrade, did you? I'm guessing the whole phone call (or store visit) was about upgrading the phones. They're not going to volunteer the lower rates, you have to ask. Once you've got all the info, at least than, you can make an informed decision about whether the upgrade is worth over $1100 (in my case).

Really.

I think what may be happening for many is that they're so used to upgrading as soon as they can, they don't check out what the monthly price is without an upgrade.

Keep in mind this is the industry that charges both the caller and the receiver the same minutes for the call. That charges both the texter and the textee for the text. Yeah, that doesn't matter that much anymore with all the unlimited talk and text, but they used to do that. Even Ma Bell didn't do that. The caller was charged for the call.

Oh, that activation fee? When we got or 4s's, I politely, but firmly requested they waive that fee. This was before we had completed the deal. They did wait it. No, what they did was to credit our account for the amount of the fee.

I have for many years now, assumed that they price being quoted is not written in stone. I always ask the merchant for a better rate. I decide ahead of time if I'm willing to accept the official rate if they won't negotiate.

 

[DaveF]

Fascinating. Well, that third year was a heck of a year, and the iPhone contract was the last thing on my mind. And when I went in to upgrade, I was upgrading. I had no intention of staying with the iPhone 4. The home button was failing, the camera lens was terribly scratched, and it was only marginal at running ios 7. The $35 act fee eluded me. I'm not sure we were told about it. We noticed it at home on the receipt. We called and they removed one of them. If I keep my iPhone 5s a third year, I'll try to remember to ask about lowering the rate.

 

[Johnny Angell]

I think upgrading a cell phone is getting as complicated and deceptive as buying a car. I'd advise researching plans before you go in the next time. I also think if I call from my home, I feel less pressured and I'm more likely to decline the deal. If I were to call verizon, I'll bet they're doing the same. They might label things differently, emphasize things differently, but they collecting for that phone every month. Even though you are still on a contract, it couldn't hurt to call to see if you could get a lower rate. I think rates have gone done and they could still collect more than the normal rate to pay for the phone, while still lowering your rate. They may say no, but maybe they'll say yes.

 

[Sam Posten]

If I were at all interested in carrying around 3 year technology I'd be right there with you Johnny, cell phone contracts are the worst. For me tho this is non negotiable, I will upgrade every time I'm eligible if not before and consider it a CDB, a cost of doing business.My quibble isn't with folks who choose to use older tech to avoid paying for subsidy fees, it's with people who choose to buy the 2 year old phone on subsidy to save $200 up front. That's madness. They are paying the same monthly fees as the rest of us with brand new phones and instead of paying $2600 over the life of that phone they are spending $2400 (assuming a roughly $100 a month bill). So they save $200 and have a 4 year old phone by the end of their contract. Bizarre.

 

[Johnny Angell]

If I were at all interested in carrying around 3 year technology I'd be right there with you Johnny, cell phone contracts are the worst. For me tho this is non negotiable, I will upgrade every time I'm eligible if not before and consider it a CDB, a cost of doing business.My quibble isn't with folks who choose to use older tech to avoid paying for subsidy fees, it's with people who choose to buy the 2 year old phone on subsidy to save $200 up front. That's madness. They are paying the same monthly fees as the rest of us with brand new phones and instead of paying $2600 over the life of that phone they are spending $2400 (assuming a roughly $100 a month bill). So they save $200 and have a 4 year old phone by the end of their contract. Bizarre.

The folks who try to save money up front by buying an older phone illustrate, in my mind at least, how well the cell companies have hidden the true cost of the phone. I think most people think the monthly rate is the monthly rate. The rates come in tiers at increasing rates for more of ... something. They don't know they're paying every single month for that phone. So saving $200 seems bigger.

Also, saving $200 is a bad thing? You call it bizarre, Sam. I don't think its a bad thing to save money when you can.

Sam, you have placed a premium on being as current as possible with your phones, Your privilege. There have always been people who adopt early and often and those who don't. When I was on the phone with att, and the gal kept telling the only extra expense with the additional $30 per month, I was thinking why not get the 5s now? I knew there was that up front fee and she finally revealed it. That one-time fee is what stopped me from upgrading. It was only afterwards I did the math and learned how much those phones would cost over 24 months.

Afterwards I asked myself is my 4s dificient? Make calls..check. Text...check. Check the weather...check. Set alarms...check. Keep a calendar...check. How is the new phone going to be better? It'll probably be faster, maybe a bigger screen, some other improvements. Is it going to do something groundbreaking that I can't live without? I could be wrong, but I doubt it.

I will admit that having understood the cell phone contract better, that when I do upgrade, I'll get the current phone...but just not now. I'd like to live with my -1 generation technology (soon to be -2) for a while and enjoy that new, shiny monthly rate that's $55 less per month.

 

[Sam Posten]

All very valid Johnny, no argument.

 

[Johnny Angell]

All very valid Johnny, no argument.

Thank you Sam. BTW, my "Like" is for your signature, which I just noticed. Made me laugh out loud.