iPhone Discount Confirmed

April 16th, 2008 Posted in News

The popularity of the iPhone seemed assured but seemingly the phone’s high price is still preventing some from owning this high tech piece of kit. O2 have announced today that it will be dropping the price of the 8GB iPhone by £100 to a more respectable retail price of £169. The deal is not infinite however, by the 1^st of June this year the price will return to its previous astronomical figure.

This move from O2 could be seen as a response to the German iPhone supplier T-Mobile, dropping their prices for the 8GB model. Unfortunately however there seems to be no let up in the high pricing of the 16GB model that will still cost over £350.

O2 claim that the handset is their ‘fastest-selling device’ and the drop in price is purely a move to add impetus to the high number of sales. Further claims from O2 state that iPhone customers are some of their happiest and the drop in price is a way of giving more customers the chance of being this happy. Believing this altruistic attitude however could be seen as slightly naïve.

The exclusive deal between O2 and Apple seems to have paid off for the phone retailer, it is estimated that sixty percent of customers who own an iPhone are in fact new to O2. Combine this with the higher rates that iPhone tariffs carry and O2 really are laughing all the way to the bank.

Other theories for the price drop attribute the need to clear stock of the 8GB device before an improved version is released later this year. This new model will have high speed 3G facilities and will add to the already extensive repertoire of capabilities. As the old 8GB device flies off the shelves at this revised price, the O2 deal seems to be bringing both companies high levels of prosperity. Estimated to be the most desired phone ever, there is little doubt that this success will continue as new versions of the device are released.