Woo New iPhone Woo

Comment by John Corey (Guest)

John Corey (Guest) — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 09:20:46 +0000

I think apple did decide to play the game. They are also going to require registration at time of purchase. Steve-o also compromised on the movie rentals. This is the turing point. Apple has decided to make compromises they would not normally make in order to reach a wider audience.

Comment by Ken

Ken — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 18:02:14 +0000

Ahh, the fine print! As it turns out, the rate plan for the new iPhone will be $10 a month more than before, as AT&T is partially subsidizing the initial price of the phone. Over the course of the two-year service agreement, new iPhone owners will actually end up paying $40 more for the phone.

This is a typical gimmick for other phone manufacturers; maybe Apple just decided that it's better to just play the game.

Woo New iPhone Woo

Ken — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 14:57:05 +0000

The short version:

- 3G wireless
- GPS
- Improved battery
- Improved audio
- $199 for 8GB, $299 for 16GB
- Available July 11

I think I'm most surprised by the depth of the price cut. That's half the price of the previous generation 8GB model ($399), and one-third the price of the original 8GB model ($599). Apple must be working some serious magic with volume component discounts to get the price down that quickly.

Immediate question: how long will the iPhone remain AT&T-only?

I'll have more WWDC commentary shortly, covering the new MobileMe service (which replaces dot.mac) and the new iPhone applications.