The Apple iPhone is going to dent your bank account a bit more than expected. The 4GB model will come in at a shade under £600 while the 8GB could be as much as £660 according to some early, pre-order prices on Amazon Germany [thanks Jan]. This compares to approximately £255 and £306 in the US.
When you’re finished choking you might also want to consider some of the other things that are taking the shine of the latest ‘hot’ mobile phone. Most of these are confirmed, while others fall into the ‘maybe’ category.
News source: Gizmondo-UK
Picture: Jobs with iPhone
Link: Neowin Discussion (Thanks ljames28)
When you’re finished choking you might also want to consider some of the other things that are taking the shine of the latest ‘hot’ mobile phone. Most of these are confirmed, while others fall into the ‘maybe’ category.
- The iPhone will be 3G when it arrives in Europe but it will not arrive for a year – not the end of 2007 as expected.
- It will be a closed device and will only run software released by Apple.
- It will use Apple’s DRM software FairPlay which, ironically, no one thinks is fair, at all. This will stop users from playing anything other than music bought via iTunes.
- Apple could win the right to use the iPhone name in Europe, thanks to a loophole says Outlaw.com.
News source: Gizmondo-UK Picture: Jobs with iPhone Link: Neowin Discussion (Thanks ljames28)
I hate all that DRM crap though, the Zune has it, the iPod has it.. so much for "sharing" in the digital age.
Not many music companies complained when we were living in a LP (Vinyl) and Tape (Cassette) world, did they?
No 3rd party applications will kill the "iPhone".
Does that mean it wont play MP3s
I wouldn't trust Amazon to know the pricing. I don't see why Apple would either have decided yet or tell Amazon.
To answer acnpt's question properly: You're right and wrong. You probably are locked into iTunes (shock) but iTunes will transfer MP3s and CD tracks to Apple's own audio format which, yup, supports their version of DRM (digital rights management).
of course it will play standard MP3s, just like the ipod does.
sensationalist journalism
(and no, you will not need to convert them to aac as the previous comment states)
That price seems way off too. Apple's press release says $499/$599 depending on GB. While I don't see the price being at the exchange rate, I'd say £350/£450 depending on GB as top line. But as someone else pointed out, there'll be deals with service providers which will knock a serious dent off that price, eg £150 for the phone with a 12 month contract @ £30/mo. I would imagine the iTunes RiNGTONE store is already planned...
The rationale about not opening up the software is the same as with the iPod, ie probably not a lot of need to open it up to third parties for your average customer (99% of customers?). Plus when there's less to break, things are less likely to break. Since there is quite a lot of non-Apple iPod software out there I see no reason for the iPhone, if it sells, to have a similar choice of non-Apple software.
that $499 / $599 price though is already on a 2 year contract. So itws going to be more expensive on a 12month contract, and god knows how much on PAYG.
So in that case, the price quoted could be correct, as I would expect it to be around £600 on PAYG.
So in that case, the price quoted could be correct, as I would expect it to be around £600 on PAYG.
Ya but this is a US 2 year contract. Look at other phones in the US under contract, the discount given is pretty poor. I'd expect much higher discounts for a 2 year contract in Europe (just compare new phones available boths sides of the atlantic).
But the price most of all is what would make it in its current form not interesting to me at least.
I have a Nokia N73 phone, 3G, 3.2MP camera on the back and a VGA camera on the front, mini SD slot and Symbian operating system. The only feature I'm really missing on it is Wifi. I can get a 2GB mini SD card for around 50 euros and with a 2 year contract I paid 12 euros for my phone. Now the rumor on the iPhone is a $500 and $600 contract, without a contract the N73 runs at about 370 euros.
So at least by the current rumored prices, it is a great phone, but at least in my opinnion it's too expensive and too limited with the closed of platform. Symbian has tons of 3rd party apps, for example a software that makes my phone into a bluetooth webcam.
As for Apple's DRM, it already exists on the iPod. Hasn't stopped them selling millions of iPods to buyers who just rip CD's to mp3's, myself included. I wouldn't know the iTunes store if I tripped over it.
Expensive hardware and proprietary DRMed file format. I cannot honestly see Apple being so stupid as to repeat some of Sony's mistakes.
They are also smaller and available for months. There is no single reason why anyone should buy a iPhone unless you are a Apple fetishist or like to spend big cash on useless things.
/me pats symbian and wm5
All companies are money hungry these days like Apple and Sony. And no I am not against Apple in any way as I have an iPod and love it, but this whole iPhone thing... I don't see it going anywhere anytime soon.
As far as this phone, Apple has always been known to be very propriety and pro-DRM (aka anti-consumer), so the 'features' list on this phone doesn't surprise me, but it will definitely prevent me from owning one.
As far as this phone, Apple has always been known to be very propriety and pro-DRM (aka anti-consumer), so the 'features' list on this phone doesn't surprise me, but it will definitely prevent me from owning one.
To be honest, its not really Apple's choice to use DRM or not - its a case of use it or don't sell music from the big publishers...
£ != $
So that means $600 is really £305, not £600!
8gb = 1000 euro
4gb = 900 euro
That statement about fairplay ... is it going to be any different than the ipod, or we won't be able to play ANY mp3 we have at all??
Can people realize that this has not come from Apple, or even been leaked from Apple (as far as I'm aware anyway), so I'd take it all with a very large pinch of salt.
BTW NO DRM
We dont need ANY drm on our lives
theres some word, I forget what it is, it starts with a "p" and ends with an "oser", it describes those kinds of people as well as the people who bitch about Windows and how much Linux is better even though they never used Linux in their life, or the people who are only true fans to a band if they have a single this week.
there is no way i would EVER pay ANYWHERE CLOSE to that much for a phone!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!11111eleven1111111
i thought Apple computers were expensive, this is a little ridiculous.....
if people were getting robbed for there $400 ipods...........and there $600 ps3's.............this thing costs more then twice as much and alot smaller........
did any of you seriously took time to even check amazon.co.uk and amazon.de?
THERE IS NO PRICE TAG!
both the 4gb and the 8gb have no price tag on them!
This is all bogus info and some more blog views! geez... anything that you can put in a blog that has the words apple and iphone gets views...
geezz..
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