@all nah not really, just like laughing at the responses I get from you guys :)

dantaylor08

@DW: Maybe Apple realizes they can clear all of their inventory to exporters anyway? They've experienced the sell-outs, not AT&T.

Sure, Apple has all the power and it seems bizarre, but I think Apple needs to sweeten the deal with AT&T to keep them happy. By all accounts, unlocking is rampant and many of the new markets Apple will enter will be without carrier lock-in. That can't make AT&T happy. But if their relationship which has been obscenely lucrative to Apple actually leads to real marketshare gains and subscriber contracts (which coincidentally are more lucrative to Apple than just a hardware sale)... Hells, yeah, they both will benefit happily.

Not that I'm saying it's true, just not insane.

Tim Faulkner

This could be true, you pay $399 at the store and then when the unit is activated you get a $200 rebate back from them, makes sense cause it will make anyone think twice before unlocking it and going to another provider

snitch29

Kick-awesome.

Please let it be true. It makes sence. I bet this would mean the new iPhone will be more open to other carriers, too, without all the hacky-hacky.

Doesn't matter to me much, though, because I like At&t and I'm stickin' with 'em.

chasema

@dantaylor08: bitter much?

darthweef

April Fool's Day is gone, Gizmodo, there's no need for this post

alter

@ dantaylor08:

Any story is worthy of whining about Apple users, eh Dan? "Waaahhh, Steve Jobs. Fan..b..b..boys (sniff). Shiny plastic!!! Boo hoo!"

Pathetic, bitter little troll.

LagunaSol

is it $199 for the 8 Gb and $299 for the 16 Gb?
are they adding a 32 Gb at $399?

j1234

As already mentioned here: Unless APple drops the price of ALL iPhones to $199, I can't see the AT&T Stores being allowed to get such a head's up over the Apple Stores.

It'd be incredible if this happens, but I wouldn't hold my breath.

DW

If it's too good to be true then it probably is...

apeguero

I have been waiting for both 3G and a price drop to get one. Looks like I finaly will.

Mr.SithNinja

...so wait a minute.

If I get it from an Apple store, it will be $399.99. What am I getting for the extra 200 bones...

...If AT&T is now subbing it, does this mean the Apple Store iphones will be unlcocked?

If this is the case, the iPhone will seriously sell like crazy -

newtype2011

@ndonahue:

ding ding ding

G_Money

Don't call BS just yet. It might be possible that AT&T is offering their own subsidy outside of any contractual relationship with Apple. That would explain why it's limited to AT&T stores -- not because they can't credit an account activated on iTunes, but because sales outside of AT&T stores don't allow for the oh so profitably accessory sales.

ndonahue

@Jason Chen: But to be fair it doesn't say that it will either.

I just generally don't buy this one. They didn't have any problems getting to where they are now with AT&T not subsidizing the phone the first time around. With all of the talk about changing the game and what not I don't see any reason why they'd feel the need to do it this time.

It may of been a push from AT&T who thinks that there are too many jailbroken phones on other networks but A. From what we've seen so far it doesn't seem like they're the ones with the pull in the relationship and B. there has been a question for some time about what percent of jailbroken phones are running on anything different. You couldn't even get the 3G on it that way so AT&T pretty much has a captive market in that regard.

If they want to pull in more people I think that apple will just market it a lower price point with no subsidies either way.

tande04

@Tim Faulkner: "he wasn't the glory of the reveal to himself"

he WANTS

Tim Faulkner

@Jason Chen: Agreed, I just found Fortune's "to avoid previous discounting snafu" strategy highly suspect. Of course, the taps shut off and shift over at some point. I doubt Apple will have actual trouble clearing inventory since the gray market is so ripe. Jobs will announce early because he wasn't the glory of the reveal to himself, not the FCC. Until then, trying to measure retail inventories is just as accurate as any tea leaf reading... especially when everyone pegs it in the next 1-2 months anyway with an announce at WWDC.

Tim Faulkner

@CGrant: No, only the discount would be available at AT&T.

But if true, I'm sure my parents would love a used 4-gig for their anniversary in August...

nojo

@tande04: To keep AT&T happy since Apple has been screwing them with most customers preferring to go direct to Apple rather than through AT&T. And they wouldn't be eliminating the "best feature," just encouraging customers to support their carrier via one discounted option.

Tim Faulkner

Whoawho-whoops! I just put my iPhone on eBay!

SuperCollider

"Current first-gen iPhone users probably won't get this $200 subsidy when upgrading either, unless perhaps they renew for another 2 years."
Don't you already have to renew for another 2 years in order to qualify for a device upgrade?

packetsniffer

This will def get me to port over from VZW.

G_Money

@Tim Faulkner: The subtle hint is unintentional, and is just a side effect of them not having more shipments coming in. I'm sure they don't want anyone to know that a new one is coming until it's here.

Jason Chen

*Caugh* B.S. *Caugh*
I highly doubt Fortune on this one. A lot of people love the fact that they can just buy an iPhone at the Apple Store, so I doubt Apple would make sales exclusive to AT&T stores. The whole first gen users pay more is very unlikely, if Apple does do this expect reimbursement just like when the iPhone's original price was reduced to $399. But hey things do go this route, customers could just purchase iPhones online.

CGrant

"Apple will cut off shipments of the old phone in order to clear up inventory and give a subtle hint that you should wait before buying."

Aren't those two contradictory goals?

Tim Faulkner

no copy/paste no care

igneous

This actually makes sense. Apple will continue to up it's market share and get continued subscription fees. If you think they saturated the market with the iPod wait until this...oh wait they are locked to AT&T. Never mind.

Mayor McRib

lol I cant believe how many people are buying into this. If its a report about Apple it must be true!!!!!!!!

dantaylor08

Just a hunch, but I think this may help sell some iPhones.

Not that they needed help selling them anyway.

aseriesoftubes

@hiphophipotamus:

first of all, November was 5-6 months ago, i wouldn't really call that "just"

and second, this is just rumor, the price hasn't dropped yet

so keep yer pants on

MrBlahBlah

@dantaylor08: The article forgot to mention that battery replacements will now be free for life at any Apple Store.

dingus

"people buying and exporting will be paying the higher price"

I think many of us enter in this situation.

iscangel

@tande04: They didn't say you couldn't sign up with iTunes. They could possibly just credit your account for $200 when you're done with the process.

Jason Chen

If they get the SDK rolling out some cool aps, and make it so you can run more than one app at a time (I know there is a rumor, but I want to see it), AND, I can get a good plan, I might have to try this.

My HTC Mogul is been great, and beats the current iPhone's in just about every respect except UI, and I pay $33 a month with Sprint to get every damn option they offer.

But they are doing such cool things with the iPhone, and 3G, GPS, and 3rd Party Apps were the main reasons I stayed away.

Oh yeah, that and AT&T, that part still sucks.

VulnoX

Yeah, it doesn't really make any sense.

Why would apple effectively screw themselves like that? You take away one of the best features of the original in that you just take it home and do it yourself without having to deal with an AT&T store associate.

tande04

So would this be about same size as the Touch?

LanceWebb

Wow, I feel cheated. I just got one in November and now its half the price I paid and better. WTF!!!!

I'll be getting one anyways though because I am a Apple lemming.

hiphophipotamus

sounds too good to be true - like some Apple fanboy who kisses the feet of a Steve Jobs poster every morning decided to start a rumor because he has nothing better to do with his pathetic, worthless life.

dantaylor08

$199?! That's highway robbery!!

takashimike

giggidy giggidy

innout3x3

$200. I'm in!

innout3x3

i'll believe it when i see it in the store. until then i remain optimistically skeptical.

Paradise

@jcouvret -
Wow you're a genius! you just claimed for yourself the prediction this article just made - did you even read it? :)

dantaylor08

With all the talk of unlocked iphones in Australia and other countries where a locked-in phone just won't work, I'm ready to believe this. My guess is:

$399 at an apple store - unlocked
$199 at AT&T with a 2-year contract

I'm coming back to this article in two months and commenting about how sweet I am for guessing it right! :)

jcouvret

im gonna have to agree with graffiksguru.

SHENANIGANS.

gadgetchic

@DW:

They won't get a heads up on Apple, its still going to cost ATT the wholesale price of the phone regardless. Shit 10 million phones at $300 wholesale each who gives a rate ass who sells them. Joe SHit the rag man could sell them for all Steve cares he gets his $3,000,000,000 plus untold $$$ per phone from ATT.

rjflyn

I'm calling bullshit, especially when I see things like "according to a person familiar with the strategy"

graffiksguru

count me in.

James

Not going to happen. Apple doesn't bring out a new model with more features and sell it for less, and AT&T sure as hell isn't going to subsidize another $200+ off a new model.

That being said, if you bought an iPhone you don't get to complain about a new model coming out. Ever.

Gofastmazda

try, TRY! I say to not love an iPhone for 199. and for people saying myeah myeah 399 its still way less than what some suckers paid day one. I am one of said suckers.

odnet

How does the logic connect that just because the phone is subsidized $200 by AT&T it is therefore required that the phone be $200 less than it currently is?!? Does anyone else see a flaw in this logic - Apple is setting the price here who is to say that the phone isn't also $200 more expensive as well?

The fact of the matter is that Apple remains in control of the pricing of the phone and they will set the price at the point at which the market is willing to pay - just like they do with ALL of their products. There really is no free lunch with them, they're not stupid.

vsboxerboy

Ah, Moritz! Should have noticed that. Yes, the man is generally a moron when it comes to Apple. But, ultimately, I wouldn't be too surprised if AT&T introduced some degree of subsidy. Apple's comments in the conference call seemed to hint as much (i.e. "they don't care what the carriers charge" despite it being apparent that the AT&T/Apple pact began definitely started off that way).

Tim Faulkner

@CGrant: I think the point is to get a higher attach rate to the AT&T service plans. They seem to believe a lot of phones are getting unlocked and going on other carriers. If they can get you in a 2 year contract with them instead, they'll easily make back the $200. Keep in mind this is just AT&T subsidizing, and Apple is not making any less money (in fact, they make more since they get a kick back on the recurring revenue for the phones, so a higher attach rate is much better for them than just selling the phones).

Accelerata

smells like shit to me.

yablunk

This will be catastrophic like Y2K was

Oh...

Gadgetgirl

Another iPhone rumour, but this one sounds great for me, if it finally becomes true!

Nevertheless, it seems that the source doesn´t worth us to believe him. As usual, we´ll need to wait.

literato

Ya and Santa is going to pick up the tab on the remaining $200.


Stop me if you've heard this one, we'll also be getting 1.5 years free service from AT&T this time around too.

Somebody get Fortune on the phone and let them know I'll feed them BS for half the money they pay this guy.

He must be on some crazy stuff to come up with this BS.

mikestan86

The only person wholl be picking up "the extra $200" is the consumer. I think AT+T could care less about selling iPhones, they want you to subscribe to their PLAN. Your $200 "savings" is made up in less than half a year by how much you pay in monthly service charges, even sooner if you have a premium service package.

Anyway, if the iPhone does drop to $199 thats about what its worth, finally!

pevans34

Early adopter nightmare..

iaintgoingthere

@hiphophipotamus: Really? There has been talk of a 3G iphone forever now and you still went out and bought one? Really? Dude... You cheated yourself. Enjoy your wicked slow intertubes!

hagrun

@hiphophipotamus: Are you really going to cry about your 7 month old device, and expect Apple, or any company for that matter, to do something about it? Give me a break!

drummerjoe

First off, I really want to love the iPhone, but I can't. I received it on April 5, and today is April 24, and I hate it more than the Treo 650 and 700's I've dealt with over the past three years.

The iPhone is a poorly designed, incredibly buggy device that technologically is a major failure on many fronts. The hardware and software DO NOT LIVE up to the hype. I always wait at least a year or more to purchase new products from Apple, but with the iPhone I should have waited three or more years.

From the lack of tactile keys that is supposed to be the best interface ever designed for a smart phone, yet results in 40% keystroke entry mistakes to the distortion that the iPhone feeds out to every audio and video device on the planet, it's the worst communications device I have ever experienced.

The iPhone distorts my computer screen, the car audio system to all loudspeakers, either active or passive, including high-end shielded near-field studio monitors, from my Apple iSticks on my computer, high-end surround sound stereo system in my living room to the frigging clock radio.

The static this iPhone kicks out to loudspeakers in my home is HOUSE WIDE, and I am in a 1400 square foot home. If the iPhone is on my kitchen table 15 feet away from my livingroom stereo system, I will still have iPhone distortion come out through the loudspeakers HOUSE WIDE. This is supposed to be an audiophile device and all it does is dump static onto every loudspeaker I stand next to, in every environment.

I have a CRT monitor and I know I am going to get an SMS, email or phone call to the iPhone, because several seconds before the message is received, the entire 17-inch computer screen distorts for as long as 5 seconds, throwing it completely out of focus.

Why the heck does this iPhone not have a pop-up keyboard find function in the database? I have 6300 names in my contact database and it can take 90-seconds or more to find a name through scrolling!

Why doesn't the iPhone have the same pop-up keyboard feature as in the SMS or Safari function so I can start typing a name and have the contact app bring up the name as I type the letters, as similar to the contact find feature on the Treo? C'mon - how the heck do you not have that common-sense feature? What about a voice find feature OR VOICE ACTIVATED DIALING for the contact database?

Now this really makes me nuts - Safari goes buggy every five days, it crashes more and more frequently and then I need to reset the phone and then I loose all my presets! This is the worst part of the phone. Additionally, regardless web searching is PAINFULLY SLOW! Five minutes to bring up www.huffingtonpost.com or www.rawstory.com, only to have it crash when I try to enlarge an article… argh.

Why on earth does it take SMS up to 10 or more seconds to start and present my message string? Ten seconds for this app to start - gimme a break!

No video function? I can't capture video? Not even a few seconds? Argh.

I can't send a picture through SMS? Good lord.

What the heck is the deal with the recessed headphone plug that makes it impossible to use a standard 3.5mm stereo plug? Now I have to purchase a third-part adapter to use other head phones on a plane or the cassette car adapter? C'mon.

Clearly, the iPhone is the Emperor's New Clothes. It's a perfect example if you throw enough advertising, PR and marketing dollars at something, millions of people will eat dirt and call it fillet mignon.

Christopher B.

prthatrocks

Comment on AT The phone is cheaper because Apple will be collecting more subscription revenue via a higher cost 3G data package that will more than likely be $30+/mo Also, plan on having to activate the phone in-store if you want the extra $200 on the phone.

SaranyaHelva

@packetsniffer:

YES

marcdinkel

Yeah bcuz Y2K was so catastrophic. People are gonna start stockin up on canned goods and water because $200 got knocked off the iphone. lol. but I'm definitely gonna have 2 get me one. mmm...3G!

trjones87

@prthatrocks: lol, you must have gotten the one with the atomic radio receiver....lie much?

HAGE

@prthatrocks: My iPhone ate my puppy :(

Kaiser-Machead

question? Does anybody have the new specs for the 3G phone. according to the UK Giz. its going to be redesighned all together. If this be the case, time for my phone to go on ebay ( depending on release date. I cant go back to the crappy moto in my closet)

[uk.gizmodo.com]

Boots_Mcoy

Well then, this gets my vote for best rumor of the day.

Ledsled

if this rumor come to fruition i am definitely going to buy one.

kevman90

Of course AT&T makes up the $200 delta over the course of the 2 year contract so the discount doesn't really sound that big of news to me. It's been that way for every phone on the market. Free cell phones or phone you can get for $49 are not free without an extended contract. Try replacing a phone while you are still in contract to see how much the phone really costs. In any event, I would wait until iPhone 2.0 software starts shipping to consider one. Hopefully, they'll address some of the other issues mentioned in these posts, but from a corporate standpoint we would not even consider this phone without the ActiveSync push technology that is promised in 2.0. IMAP sucks.

blahblahblah77

I shall not understand that in it especial. So-so. About what phone.

shizik76