The iPhone thread

[Tezcatlipoca]

I pre-ordered a 16GB iPhone 4 at lunchtime via the Apple website, for Reserve & Collect at my local Apple Store.

I put down for SIM Free, but I may go Contract or PAYG depending on what the prices are when the idiot networks finally give us some actual INFORMATION.

So far, I think this launch is looking like a bit of a farce.

I can understand Apple not allowing the networks to offer pre-orders (if strict orders from Apple is in fact why they aren't), if Apple wants to ensure that it has enough stock to fulfil its own pre-orders, before letting the networks get anything.

But... Why the complete lack of any information? The *only* network to have released any tariff info so far is O2, yet they haven't released handset prices. And the other networks...as well as not releasing handset prices, they haven't even announced their tariffs!

Lame.

The only emails I had from O2 were a few rather pathetic emails from "Guru James" ( ) last week, which from what I can tell on other forums have been widely ridiculed (they really are quite awful). All I have heard from Orange is along the lines of "Coming soon! We'll keep you up to date!" Ditto for Vodafone. I don't think I've heard anything yet from Three.

I would have preferred to order online for delivery on the 24th, as that way I'd have been guaranteed to get one (rather than having one reserved at the store & hoping they don't let some other walk-in have it), but the only bloody way to do that is to buy one SIM free... which is something I don't know if I want to do until I know what all the various networks are offering for tariffs & handset prices...

Oh, & the Apple Website can no longer ship orders earlier than the 2nd of July, so that's the whole pre-order allocation gone in one day.


Still, I suppose one plus is that at least we are getting it the same time as the Yanks, unlike the stock shortage cockups that caused the iPad to be delayed in Europe.

[Jimmy-J]

I've been on contract with Vodafone for the past 3 years, my contract with them is up in November, and was going to upgrade from my trusty HTC Magic to the iPhone 4. But now my son has just told me about the new Dell Streak, and now I'm having second thoughts!

http://shop.o2.co.uk/mobile_phone/sp...ll/Streak_16GB

[mr_bo]

Orange prices up:-
http://iphone.orange.co.uk/plans/#iPhonePAYM

[Raistlin]

Orange seem to be very keen to tie people in for 24 months - I'm guessing the price of the handsets from Apple is more expensive this time 'round.

Originally Posted by Rob M

Orange seem to be very keen to tie people in for 24 months - I'm guessing the price of the handsets from Apple is more expensive this time 'round.

Yeah, Much worse than Vodafone's 'leaked' contracts.

[Tezcatlipoca]

Although the upfront handset prices are high on Orange, I think the tariffs themselves are better than O2's (e.g. for £35 on an 18 month contract, you get 600 minutes instead of O2's 300, and 750MB data instead of O2's 500MB).

Still no handset prices from O2, and still NOTHING AT ALL WHATSOEVER from T-Mobile, Three, & Vodafone.

I'm swaying towards an Orange contract at the moment.

I don't mind being tied to another contract... If I want to get iPhone 5 next year, I can do what I did last year for the 3GS & get one PAYG & then shove the v4 SIM in the v5 to see out the remainder of the contract.

Total cost of contract phone vs SIM free or PAYG phone seems fairly equivalent to me, with Orange (& presumably O2)... usual case of small lump upfront & high monthly cost versus big lump upfront & small monthly cost. SIM free may be £499, but if you take the £229 upfront cost of a £35 contract & add that to 18 months' worth of the difference* between a SIM only deal (£20) & a contract (£35) you get £229 + (18x£15) = £499.

*[I never understand why some people use 18 x the full monthly tariff when working out the total cost of the phone...that £35pcm is not just for the phone, it includes usage too... so surely a better indicator of your monthly contribution towards paying off the subsidy is to take the cost of the contract tariff minus the SIM free tariff]

---------- Post added at 21:01 ---------- Previous post was at 20:57 ----------

Oh, & O2's "Guru James" has been replaced with "Guru Sarah".

Latest email links to the SIM swapping pages:

http://shop.o2.co.uk/new-iphone/aboutsimswap.html

http://swapmysim.o2.co.uk/

[nffc]

Well, I got my 3gs the other day, £25 a month on the tariff I pasted, I'm rather satisfied. Probably more minutes and texts than I'll use, though the fact Ive paid for them might mean I do use them more, and that I don't have to mess around to text any more...

And since on the new scale Orange tariffs are £35 min which I'd probably not even entertain... I got somewhat in before the change.

[mr_bo]

o2 now up:-

http://shop.o2.co.uk/new-iphone/tariffs.html

Vodas still looks better is they are right

[mr_bo]

Originally Posted by zing

Vodas still looks better is they are right

Yep.

In a nutshell:-

https://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?...GCCz9zyA#gid=0

[mr_bo]

vodafone:-

http://shop.vodafone.co.uk/iphone/pricing.html

so the leaked voda prices were not correct then shame that

http://shop.o2.co.uk/new-iphone/wheretobuy.html o2 are saying they wont be available till the end of July through the online shop

[mr_bo]

Well I have been waiting with anticipation for the iphone 4 and the pricing but truly un-impressed so have ordered an HTC Desire instead.
These iphone tariffs are dreadful value for money.

[Zee]

this is good. at least people can now have decent 3G coverage with the iPhone. time for all the O2 customers to switch for decent coverage.