O2 Slash £100 from entry level 8mb iPhone
From £269 to £169 but still on the relatively expensive lengthy monthly contract.
A number of things are happening here.
1) The iPhone isn’t actually that popular in the UK. This is based on their choice of network provider (O2) and cost of the hardware. Outside of some Tech friends I haven’t actually seen an iPhone in the wild.
2) Apple are about to announce a hardware revision. I would imagine the discontinuation of the 8mb model and the introduction of a 32gb to partner with the existing 16gb version. So O2 don’t want left with a load of 8gb stock they cant sell.
So even at £100 off this is still too expensive over the life of the contract.
As for the hardware revision, the worst kept secret in tech is the inclusion of 3g. One of the biggest stumbling blocks for adoption of the iPhone, particularly in Europe.
April 17th, 2008 at 10:26 am
Spot on, Colin. I only know one person with an iphone and he’s a Mac fan boy. It’s a very impressive phone, so easy to use and powerful enough so that every app on it is fast, pretty much like using a desktop. It puts my Windows phone to shame, even a race to discover a wifi hotspot was fast and easy for the iphone and a complete embarrassment for my Windows phone. No wonder so many iphone-like models are coming onto the market, but, I struggle to admit, they lack the hardware and OS that make the iphone so enjoyable to use. Maybe Android will be its only real competition until Symbian and Microsoft get the word “slick” into their dictionary.
So why don’t I have an iphone? As you said, Col, the monthly tariffs are expensive and it doesn’t have 3G yet.
April 17th, 2008 at 2:06 pm
Hi Gary
Looking forward to seeing what the they roll out in the hardware refresh.
I am sold on the touch interface which is pretty amazing even for a jaded gadget junkie like myself.
Colin