Return of the $99 iPhone 3G
The mythical $99 iPhone has returned to AT&T.
(Credit: Apple)Hey, remember the refurbished iPhone deal I wrote about late last year? Well, it's back! AT&T is offering the 8GB iPhone 3G (black) for $99. The 16GB model is available in black or white for $199. That's a savings of $100 on both models.
As before, you have to sign up for a two-year contract, and you get a warranty of "at least 90 days"--which I suspect means 90 days. (AT&T's site doesn't seem to have any specifics on the warranty--anybody know the deets?).
Of course, the price tag of the phone itself isn't what stops most people--it's the monthly nut. The bare-minimum service and data plans will run you $70 per month (plus another few bucks in taxes and fees).
Personally, I think it's worth it. Much as it kills me to write that check every month, I can't overstate how much I like--no, love--no, lurve--the iPhone. And, hey, the $100 you save on the refurb is like getting a month's worth of service free.
What do you think? Are you liking this refurb deal, or is the iPhone still too rich for your blood? While you're thinking it over, check out my six must-have iPhone freebies--a roundup of some of the latest and greatest free apps for the device.
Rick Broida, a technology writer for nearly 20 years, is the author of more than a dozen books. In addition to writing CNET's The Cheapskate blog, he oversees BNET's Business Hacks. Rick is a member of the CNET Blog Network and is not an employee of CBS Interactive. Disclosure. Deals found on The Cheapskate are subject to availability, expiration, and other terms determined by sellers. Follow Rick on Twitter at cheapskateblog. 
Rob
www.exectones.com
iPhone Ringtones for the Business User
Of course, the alternative would be to drop the price on the data plan, but I don't see that happening. Pre-iPhone, the data plans were $40 for business / PDA phones, and $20 for non-QWERTY phones. I had an old AT&T branded 8125 that I used for several months, and that was $100/mo after taxes and all the rest of the obnoxious fees they tack on.
What this does indicate to me is an effort to reduce inventories on the current gen iphone by boosting sales, which apple always does before announcing a new version... Which is exactly why I'm not upgrading my 8gb 2G to a 16gb 3G right now.. and holding out hope for an upgraded one in the next couple months.
Keep hope alive!
If my company was willing to pay ... that would be a different story.
They are often have cosmetic issues, sealing issues and general quirks. Plus, the device and/or battery may or may not give up the ghost before your contract period is up!
Bottomline: Saving a hundred bucks on the phone is nothing--it is the data plan that's the killer!
http://www.tuaw.com/2008/09/13/confirmed-3g-iphone-works-out-of-the-box-with-payg
Pages 2 and 3 of the comments there aren't loading for me atm, so I don't know if something has changed since September - like AT&T actively going after people doing it - but hopefully not.
What's especially interesting to me - she was pretty much just using the data-only prepaid plan, which IIRC is $20/month (prepaid is, or at least was, cheaper than the regular iPhone data plan). That's really what I want out of the iPhone; if I've got the internet everywhere, and all the ways of communicating it brings, I'm not sure I really need a phone.
The PAYG plan probably isn't a good deal for people who want to use the phone itself a lot, but for those who want to use it to get to the internet anywhere + make a few calls here and there it could save up to $1200 over the course of the two years you no longer have a contract for.
Not sure how much the hardware would end up costing, but certainly for this group of people you'd still have hundreds.
I went on to my account with att today and it allowed we to purchase 2 iphone 3g?s for $199 with a new 2 year contract agreement (family plan)!
email: brook1573@hotmail.com
- by birdshake June 4, 2009 7:52 AM PDT
- The data plan is also what kills it for me aswell. Come on AT&T! :(
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