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May 18, 09 - 09:47 am Comment from: Wha

Prepaid iPhone.. woot!

May 18, 09 - 09:49 am Comment from: Admiral X

Already had a prepaid iPhone. The first generation phones can be used as GoPhones, their pre-paid plan. No drawbacks either, since you pay one price and get the full benefit of post-paid service.

If Apple is able to get Skynet...erm AT&T;by the ballz....wait they already do.
So WHEN Apple gets AT&T;to do this then it will be open season on the competition. Yup, I would sign up for the Apple wunder-iTablet for 3G data service at $20.00 a month sight unseen.

Yeah, they'll reduce the data price and give you something like 5MB of data. I smell BS. Who wants an iPhone if you constantly are thinking about how much data you are using? That would totally mess up the whole experience. It would be like buying an Aston Martin and only being allowed to drive in first gear. You might feel real cool, but when a yugo zooms past you, you'll feel like a jerk.

May 18, 09 - 11:00 am Comment from: Big Als MBP

Mainstream customers are prepaid customers?

NOT!

Prepaid customers are cheap bastards with lousy credit ratings even in the best of times. They are also, for the most part, Windows users. They like their computers cheap as well.

Mainstream, no way, backwater losers, you got it.

Prepaid people may just be people that already have phones elsewhere or kids kept on a short leash by the 'rents. Lower prices mean more of my money would stay with me. That way I can afford yet another MacPro (on my 2nd one - 4 cores to 8 cores) when there's a significant hardware change..

The current $30 plan should be $20, and the $30 plan should allow tethering. All would be happy.

Could anybody who uses an iPhone explain how much data they normally use in a month? Would they normally go beyond the limited allotment in this case? Maybe most iPhone people would happily be able to use a $20/month limited data plan.

As far as price cuts, and monthly fee reductions, wouldn't it make more sense that the iPhones are getting priced more equal to other phones on the market, now? Apple and AT&T won't have exclusive rights anymore, so it would make sense that both would take less of a cut of the profit.

As far as a pre-paid iPhone, I think that's a brilliant idea! I think that more options are always a good idea, and, cheaper options are an even better idea in this economy. I've read tons of suggestions here, that Apple should make a cut-rate iPhone Nano. Why shouldn't AT&T make a cut-rate plan?

I'm reading where U.S. iPhone users pay AT&T anywhere between $70-$120/month in fees (and add any additional data from there), where pre-paid plans start anywhere from $100/year to whatever you want to add to that plan. A pre-paid iPhone would be very popular!

A prepaid iPhone will not happen. AT&T;'s subsidy per iPhone, as introduced in the 3G iPhone, is too high to risk some kid buying one to have a cheaper iPod touch.

If they want to keep me and mine as customers, AT&T;should either:

1) Reduce the cost of the existing, unlimited data by $10 per month,

or

2) Include unlimited messaging AND tethering.

Methinks the company is greedy. The cost of the iPhone itself is negligible when amortized over 24 months. The cost of the data plan is a cash cow.

What currentinterest said.

May 19, 09 - 06:30 pm Comment from: noxlady

I'd love a prepaid iPhone. I really want an iPhone, but can't justify the $70 per month. I only spend about $150 a *year* using my prepaid phone (I don't talk on the phone much). So $70 a month is pretty outrageous for me. I could just get a Touch (and very well might) but if I think of a Touch as a limited iPhone, I start getting sad because I want to be able to play the ocarina and leaf trombone without an external mike *grin* Seriously, the iPhone is much more versatile -- it's just that $70 a month that kills it for me. I'd pay the full price up front if I could use it with a prepay plan...