Softbank to give 8GB iPhones away for free
Softbank is launching a promotion that involves giving away an 8GB iPhone 3G with a new contract.
(Credit: Apple)Softbank Mobile, the iPhone carrier in Japan, plans to introduce a new program Friday that will give some iPhones away for free with a new two-year contract.
The 8GB iPhone will be free to new subscribers who sign up for a plan starting on Friday, likely to disappoint those who paid the equivalent of $235 (22,782 yen) in the recent past, according to CrunchGear. Softbank is also reducing the price of the 16GB version from $350 to $118 as part of the new "iPhone for everybody Campaign."
Softbank also cut the cost of its maximum data plan rates as part of the new announcement, from $62 a month to $45.60 a month. Voice calls and texts are free among Softbank customers, but if your friend or colleague is an NTT DoCoMo customer, charges can start to accumulate quickly at 20 cents for a 30-second call. AT&T's most expensive iPhone voice and data plan checks in at $129 for unlimited usage.
Japan always seemed like it would be a tough market for Apple to crack. Unlike in the U.S., where data-capable touch-screen phones are a relatively new idea, Japanese mobile phone users have been playing around with advanced devices for years. In September, The Wall Street Journal reported that Japanese iPhone sales were slower than expected, and there's no sign that anything has picked up since then.
There's no clear indication that Softbank is cutting prices in response to demand, but Apple COO Tim Cook noted during last month's earnings conference call that the company considers the price of the iPhone "clearly elastic," meaning that every time it has dropped the price, demand has increased. Softbank might have the same idea in mind.
Tom Krazit writes about the ever-expanding world of Internet search, including Google, Yahoo, online advertising, and portals, as well as the evolution of mobile computing. He has written about traditional PC companies, chip manufacturers, and mobile computers, spending the last three years covering Apple. E-mail Tom. 
but $70-130/mo is why i'm not an iphone user.
but $70-130/mo is why i'm not an iphone user.
its indeed a extreme market but none of the other models have the appstore with 20.000 apps. Apple needs some time to add more localized apps but eventually the iPhone, Touch and the unavoidable Tablet will conquer that market.
"trust me - if you were in japan... iPhone would be the last smartphone you would be thinking of."
I wouldn't agree with that assertion. It is probably true for Japanese users, but Japanese operating systems are generally poorly designed for English speakers. It's rare to find predictive input in English on Japanese phones these days, which is frustrating. The iPhone offers English users an excellent counterpoint to the ubiquitous Nokia offerings.
I don't have an iPhone, as my SoftBank subscription started before the company had struck its deal with Apple. I suffer along with a Toshiba phone that works well enough, but has some irritating inconsistencies in its user interface. "Designed by committee" is frustratingly obvious.
AT&T plans= Shyt
SoftBank Mobile plans= apparent Shyt
1GB of data= Shyt
I just hope that with the latest round of making its contracts, that SofBank allows people to pay considerably less for the phones (my friend, who had gotten one about 3 months ago, had to put down around $800 for the iPhone and associated fees. Amazing.). Actually, even though Japan has some of the best cell phone technology on the planet, most of the users here are complete unaware that most of the world pays significantly less in monthly fees...
- by andrew6485 March 7, 2009 3:14 PM PST
- http://4FreeiPhone.com?referral=9656
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